WATCH: Police net $5 million worth of drugs in ‘Ontario’s largest ever’ bust. Lama Nicolas reports.
TORONTO – Police in Ontario have arrested five men and seized $5 million worth of illegal drugs in what officials are calling the largest clandestine lab, methamphetamine and chemical seizure in the province’s history.
“Clandestine drug labs, and the drugs they manufacture, have a toxic and destructive impact on the lives of people, their communities, and the environment,” said Deputy OPP Commissioner Scott Tod in a media release.
“They can also lead to a wide spectrum of violent acts and property crimes involving criminal organizations,” he added.
Members of the Asian Organized Crime Task Force (AOCTF) were part of a lengthy investigation into what police say was a “syndicate involving large-scale production of methamphetamine.”
Members of AOCTF include police forces from the Toronto Police Service, Ontario Provincial Police (OPP), Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), York Regional Police, Peel Regional Police, and the Canada Border Service Agency (CBSA).
Investigators executed seven search warrants at residences and businesses across the Greater Toronto Area, and two search warrants
in the Campbellford and Warkworth areas on July 2013.
Officials say this led to the dismantling of three drug labs in the GTA which were used to mix, press and mass produce methamphetamine.
One of the sites in Campbellford was also found to be guarded with a bear trap covered with leaves.
“Clandestine drug labs can be found anywhere — both urban and rural areas are not immune,” said OPP Chief Superintendent Mike Armstrong. “The Organized Crime Enforcement Bureau will continue to target these labs as well as the criminal organizations that operate them.”
Video: Representatives from the OPP talk about the bust of clandestine meth labs which yielded $5 million worth of illegal drugs
In total, police seized 120 kilograms of pure methamphetamine—which amounts to about four million pills, 110,483 meth pills, 14 kilograms of meth powder, five motor vehicles and $81,000 in cash.
Police identified the five men who were arrested as Jimmy Sut Jhing Ng, 55, of Campbellford, Sui Yuan Zhao, 39, of Campbellford, Kok King Chao, 49, of Aurora, Joey Sui Hung Mo, 45, of Aurora and Chun Kit Wong, 28, of Markham.
They have been charged with various drug-related offences including possession of a controlled substance for the purpose of trafficking, production of a controlled substance, trafficking in a controlled substance and set trap with intent to cause bodily harm.
The accused are expected to appear in an Oshawa court on Sept. 9.
Raw Video: OPP go inside the clandestine drug lab
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