Police say 23 people have been arrested and released pending the approval of charges after an eight-month investigation into drug trafficking in northeastern British Columbia.
A statement from the Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit says it worked with police in Fort St. John, Dawson Creek and Fort Nelson to investigate what they believed to be a “large scale” drug trafficking operation.
The anti-gang agency says police used 13 warrants between October 2022 and last month to search in several communities, seizing various illicit drugs, including 10 kilograms of cocaine, three kilograms of methamphetamine and 17 kilograms of marijuana.
Police say they also seized 34 firearms, ranging from handguns to long guns, along with ammunition and two sets of body armour.
The searches in several Peace Region communities also uncovered 3,000 cartons of contraband cigarettes, at least five vehicles and $165,000 in cash.
RCMP Cpl. Madonna Saunderson says in the statement the arrests have resulted in a “significant disruption of an entrenched organized crime group.”
