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Asian Gangs Going To Pot: Report Says Grow-Operations Dominating Crime Resources.
By admin | October 26, 2004
By Dave Breakenridge
Calgary Sun.
Organized crime groups are routinely turning to “low-risk” endeavours, including marijuana grow operations, as a way of expanding their empires, law enforcement experts say. The semi-annual report on organized crime from the Criminal Intelligence Service of Alberta ranks combating marijuana grow operations, more frequently set up by Asian gangs, as one of the largest uses of police resources in the province.
“(Asian organized crime) dominates the majority of street-level cocaine trafficking in Alberta’s major urban centres as well as hydroponic (marijuana) cultivation and distribution,” the report says.
“With the current legislation and lack of significant resources this is seen as a low-risk/high return activity for organized crime groups.”
Law enforcement agencies in Alberta have seized more than $100 million in product, property and money in relation to the grow-ops since the beginning of the year.
The report also calls Asian crime groups “the most violent,” as evidenced by a number of related murders in Calgary and Edmonton over the last year.
Cops say there are up to 17 organized Asian crime gangs in Alberta, with 10 of them being considered significant operations.
Alberta Solicitor General Heather Forsyth said the growing presence of organized crime in the marijuana trade — as well as methamphetamine production — shows the importance of the work done by CISA and the Integrated Response to Organized Crime.
“We’re sending a message that Alberta is not gang or organized crime-friendly,” Forsyth said
“The establishment of the IROC team is going to make a dent, but it’s not the be-all and end-all,” she said, adding tougher sentences for production and trafficking need to be adopted.
The report also said identity theft as a growing public threat.
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