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Cops want help in island drug fight

Submitted by Nicole Seguin on Mon, 07/26/2010 - 10:33am
By Dustin Walker, Daily News
 
Gabriola RCMP want the public to help them crack down on drug activity on the Island, but one officer says that some people in the tight-knit community might be reluctant to turn in their neighbours.
 
RCMP have busted a number of marijuana-growing operations on Gabriola this year. Most recently, police dismantled two grow-ops at two separate homes on July 8. About 200 plants were seized from a home on Gallagher Way and five firearms and a crossbow were also found inside, police say. They arrested a man and a woman.
 
A man was arrested later that day after police served a search warrant at a Dunshire Road home and found another grow-op, police say. It was not connected to the Gallagher Way home.
 
In February, police busted four unconnected grow-ops on the island in a day.
 
Gabriola RCMP say enforcement and education surrounding drug activity on the island is a focus for the three-person detachment this year. But with just a few officers stationed on the island, it's important for the public to provide the RCMP with information, said Const. Mike Reid.
 
"We can't fight this fight alone, we need the public's help in identifying people who are doing this," he said.
 
Although Reid says that the community has already been "extremely helpful" as police target drug activity, he adds that it's not always easy to get people in small communities to bring information forward.
 
Because people in communities like Gabriola don't have the same anonymity as residents in larger centres, some people are nervous about even being seen talking to police officers off-duty, he said.
 
"On an island, you're going to run into the same people, you're going to see the same people. I think there is a reluctance, but that's why we say Crime Stoppers is a great tool," said Reid.
 
Richard Payne, who ran as a candidate for the B.C. Marijuana Party, thinks many people on Gabriola Island are part of a culture that is more accepting of marijuana and are less likely to help police target grow-ops.
 
"They like to be isolated, they like to be free (and) not just part of the system," he said.
 
Reid said he's not sure if there's a culture on Gabriola Island that is more accepting of marijuana than other communities. He points out that RCMP are not just targeting marijuana grow-ops but all drug activity in the community through enforcement and education.
 
DWalker@nanaimodailynews.com
 
250-729-4244
 
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Comments

Police Ask for Public's Help in Arresting...the Public?

Submitted by Nicole Seguin on Mon, 07/26/2010 - 1:00pm.

It seems that the police are the last people to read the writing on the wall and recognize that Canadians enjoy using marijuana, do not believe they should go to prison because of it, and do not want to 'turn in' their friends and family for growing it.

Canadians have been paying attention to scientific study, even if police haven't: marijuana is less harmful than alcohol or cigarettes, has medicinal value, and was prohibited by a racially motivated attempt to demonize and imprison Chinese and Mexican immigrants. Marijuana is also not a gateway drug, and could be separated from other, more harmful substances, through legalization.

In short, marijuana prohibition has been shown to be a failed and embarrassing political misstep, and Canadians will continue to be guided on marijuana use and production by science, not an outdated law or police intimidation.

Nicole Seguin