TORONTO – Fourteen people face charges and police have seized close to $200 million in illegal narcotics after search warrants were executed to take down an international drug ring.
The CBSA launched the investigation, dubbed Project Infinity, in 2010 after seizing 27 carpets at Toronto Pearson International Airport. Inside the carpets, agents found 15 kilograms of heroin.
Border agents in Canada, the United States of America, and Peru seized several packages between 2010 and March, 2013 that contained drugs shipped from India, Pakistan, Peru and Guatemala destined for Canada.
On Tuesday, Ontario police executed 8 search warrants at homes and businesses throughout the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). Eleven people were arrested Tuesday and 14 people in total have been arrested as part of the Project Infinity investigation.
Andy Ching, 39, Brandon Rilling, 24, Chia Foo Lim, 35, Hasan Hatemi, 43, Wai Loon (Allen) Kong, 34, Sabrullah Khan, 24, Van Nguyen, 46, Hien Nguyen, 45, Ally Mustapher Songambele, 43, Erick Santana, 27, Hassanali Hassanali, 45, Ines De Jesus-Paulino, 43, Lawrance Mtawali, 46, and Tonny Ezeh, 39, have all been arrested as part of the investigation.
Police were able to seize approximately $79 million in illegal narcotics. However once the drugs were “cut for retail” they would be worth close to $200 million, according to a police press release.
Some of the drugs include heroin, cocaine, opium, crystal-methamphetamine. Police also seized ephedrine, which in some doses is legal, but is also used to make crystal methamphetamine and ecstasy.
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