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www.oakvillebeaver.com The Oakville Beaver Weekend, Saturday July 5, 2008 - 3 OAKVILLE BEAVER FILE PHOTO DRUGS AND MONEY: Police displayed the cocaine and cash seized during a drug bust in May. On the frontlines of the war against drugs T he room itself is unassuming. Considering what lies within you would expect to see a guard posted outside or something, but this is not a movie and the room is accessed with the simple turn of a key. The room has the faint smell of marijuana, which makes sense because there is quite a bit present along with just about every other illegal drug imaginable. Even prescription drugs, which have been stolen for resale, can be seen, sealed within plastic bags on a nearby shelf. The cache of narcotics is impressive to say the least with a street value totaling at least a couple million dollars, however, this street value will never be realized as all these drugs have been seized by the Halton police and are now sitting in the drug vault, located deep in the heart of the Halton Regional Police Service Headquarters. Representing countless hours of work by the Halton Regional Police Drug and Morality Bureau, the drug vault is bordered by shelves on which the drugs have been sealed in envelopes and placed inside plastic containers, marked with the name of the suspect with whom they are connected. Each drug seized will remain in the vault until the conclusion of its alleged owner's trial, after which a judge will issue an order to have the drug destroyed. Like any community in the GTA there are a variety of illegal drugs available within the Halton Region, which include marijuana, cocaine, crack and ecstasy among others. For the moment, marijuana serves as the illegal drug of choice in Halton, followed by cocaine. SPECIAL REPORT Oakville Beaver reporter David Lea sheds some light on the secret life of an undercover cop with the Halton Regional police Drug and Morality Bureau. "What you would find to be the most popular would be cannabis marijuana and I think that's pretty much standard. It's really prevalent especially amongst youth," said Detective Constable Roy Rogers (as Rogers also does undercover work his real name has been withheld) of the Drug and Morality Bureau. "It's a matter of preference for the person that's using it, probably because it's more acceptable in the general public." While some may see certain types of drugs as socially acceptable, the Halton police are certainly not among them. Rogers noted that it is important to get illegal drugs off the street as heavy drug activity brings some heavy baggage to a community. "People that are addicted to some of the drugs that we investigate, obviously, have to fund their addiction and it can be quite expensive for some of them, so we'll see thefts from vehicles or any sort of thefts where they can fence the property," said Rogers. "Violence can also be a real concern because you have people involved in drug trafficking and some of the harder drugs "When I'm acting as an undercover officer in any type of investigation, I will generally try and forget that I'm there as a police officer. It just makes it easier for you to develop those stories and a rapport with. Sometimes, you'd be required to make things up and you develop an ability to think fast on your feet. Other times, you might be telling them a story that's real from your own personal life. It's really no different than meeting a new person for the first time." tend to have a lot of paranoia associated with them." The production of drugs can also have a negative impact on the structures they are manufactured in. "An indoor cannabis marijuana grow lab utilizes large light bulbs to mimic sunlight for the plants and the wiring these people do obviously isn't professional and can cause a real fire hazard for that residence and the houses that surround it," said Rogers. "In addition to that a grow operation will typically have a higher level of humidity. This causes mold in the house, which becomes a real issue because once that person moves on the mold will still be there and that can cause health problems for whoever moves in." To deal with the drug issue in Halton, the Drug and Morality Bureau has divided into two units with one dealing with street-level drug trafficking while the other seeks out marijuana grow operations and the other clandestine laboratories where the drugs are produced. Rogers noted that every investigation into illegal drug activity is different including the way the investigation gets started. "Information can come from a variety of sources," he said. "It could come from Crimestoppers tips, it could be through uniformed individual officers, who have received information through their own investigations, it could be through informants, it could be through our own investigations when we're looking into something and we find something else. There's no real typical way that an investigation starts." Halton Regional Police Detective Constable Roy Rogers (not his real name) See Infiltrating page 4 UPCOMING SUMMER COURSES FILLING UP FAST! Snow in July? We guarantee you will experience it at DriveWise! For Course Information: 905-845-7200 www.drivewiseoakville.com July 8 Tuesday Evenings (8 Weeks) · 6:00pm - 9:15pm July 21, 22, 23, 24 Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday · 9:30am - 4:15pm August 5, 6, 7, 8 Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday · 9:30am to 4:15pm