Eight Peace region residents were arrested and 55 firearms, along with suspected drugs, were seized by Fort St. John RCMP late last week.
The arrests were made after police executed several search warrants in the north Peace, including five in the city, one in Charlie Lake, and one in Cecil Lake. According to Mounties, the warrants were a “part of an investigation related to drug trafficking and organized crime.”
“Police located and seized over 55 firearms, including handguns and several suppressors, and over two kilograms of suspected cocaine,” they explained.
Officers from other cities, including Dawson Creek, the combined special enforcement unit, and police dogs joined the local street enforcement team for the searches last Friday, Jan. 23.
“The operation took a large quantity of illicit drugs off the street and kept a large amount of illegally possessed firearms out of the hands of the criminals,” said Sgt. Ian Rissanen, the plain clothes unit commander of the Fort St John RCMP.
A surge in gun violence last fall, which police said they believed was gang-related, prompted this investigation to intensify. No charges have been laid yet by the B.C. Prosecution Service. All eight accused people were released from custody as they await the Crown counsel’s decision.
