Chilliwack BC: On Wednesday September 9th, 2009 at approximately 8:00 a.m. members of the Chilliwack RCMP Crime Reduction Unit and General Duty Officers, assisted by the Lower Mainland Emergency Response Team executed a Controlled Drug and Substance Act Search Warrant at an underground bunker located on a property on Nixon Road in Chilliwack. This Grow Operation held 11,520 plants, and is the largest grow op ever busted in Chilliwack. The Value of the crop seized is over 3 million dollars.

This Grow Operation was highly sophisticated and police encountered two booby traps designed to spray bear spray when entering the property. A sub floor had been built concealing an elevator style hydraulic lift that provided access to the underground bunker where four separate grow rooms had been established. A Quonset hut had been built over top of the bunker giving the illusion of a legitimate out building on the property. Water was being irrigated from a near by fish bearing creek and pumped into the grow op, and chemicals were being dumped back onto the property with an unknown environmental impact.

The grow op was also wired with security cameras that could be monitored from the house on the property where one male suspect was arrested. The male suspect, age 61 of Chilliwack, is not known to police and is currently remanded in custody while the investigation continues.

Dismantling a grow of this magnitude takes a large coordinated effort by the police and various community partners. Chilliwack RCMP was assisted by the City of Chilliwack, Chilliwack Fire Department, BC Hydro, Security Resources Group, and is liaising with the Ministry of the Environment to ensure proper steps are taken to correct the environmental damage that has been done and ensure the property itself is never reestablished as a grow op.

A conservative estimate of the amount of Hydro Theft that has occurred at this property is over 400,000 dollars.

“We have impacted the criminals who have been operating this grow op on a financial level in seizing over 3 million dollars worth of crop, and a large quantity of equipment and supplies from the property” said Cpl. Lea-Anne Dunlop. “While we cannot confirm any links to organized crime at this point the level of sophistication of this grow op suggest many people were involved in establishing and running this operation”.

The property is in the 7600 block of Nixon Road in a rural residential area. Police are asking the public for any information on suspicious activity in the area, or possible vehicles seen coming or going from the area, to help further their investigation. Anyone with information in relation to this Grow Operation, or any Grow Operation in our community is asked to contact the Chilliwack RCMP or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS.

Accredited media seeking video footage of this grow op please contact Cpl. Lea-Anne Dunlop at lea-anne.dunlop@rcmp-grc.gc.ca
 

Released by

Cpl. Lea-Anne Dunlop
Communications Officer
Upper Fraser Valley RCMP
46326 Airport Road, Chilliwack BC V2P 1A5
Office: (604) 702-4017
Email: bcrcmp@rcmp-grc.gc.ca