Ten people from Ontario are facing a combined total of 80 charges following a year-long joint investigation probing an alleged criminal group.
Peel Regional Police announced the results of the investigation in a news release Wednesday afternoon.
According to police, the investigation started in the fall last year and targeted a group of individuals who, investigators allege, were involved in a number of criminal activities, including drug trafficking and importation, trafficking of stolen property and fraud.
Police said the investigation revealed that the alleged crimes were taking place in Peel Region, other parts of the GTA and southwestern Ontario. The activities of the group were also found to be linked to the United States and areas as far away as Pakistan, police said.
On August 30, police across the province executed eight search warrants simultaneously, seizing drugs and cash and making arrests.
Images shared by police showed stacks of bills, a large bag of heroin and a glove with a secret pouch for concealing heroin.
Items seized in the raids include 2.6 kilograms of opium with a street value of $65,000, 1.4 kilograms of heroin with a street value of $140,000, 17 grams of methamphetamine with a street value of $1,700, 1 kilogram of marijuana with a street value of $4,500, $4.5 million of stolen tractor trailer cargo and $50,000 in Canadian currency.
Peel police said that more than a dozen policing agencies across the GTA, other parts of Ontario and in the United States were involved in the operation, including the RCMP, OPP, Canada Border Services Agency and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
“Criminal operations today are borderless, and the partnerships we have are vital to our success,” Peel Regional Police Chief Jennifer Evans said in the release.
Eight people from Brampton, one person from Kitchener and one person from Woodstock are facing a variety of charges as a result of the investigation, including fraud, conspiracy, possession of property obtained by crime, possession of opioids for the purpose of trafficking, and trafficking in stolen goods.
