Manitoba RCMP are reporting that 27 people have been charged so far as part of a sustained police investigation into a drug trafficking network operating on the Bunibonibee Cree Nation.
Project Derry was launched in June by the Manitoba RCMP Integrated Law Enforcement Team following several violent incidents that occurred in the community, including an arson that destroyed the community’s band office. The investigation was supported by First Nation Safety Officers on the Bunibonibee Cree Nation and RCMP officers from Oxford House, Thompson, Selkirk and Winnipeg.
“RCMP officers have worked tirelessly over the past six months to identify and dismantle a criminal organization that worked to fuel the drug trade and intimidate the community,” said Assistant Commissioner Scott McMurchy, commanding officer of Manitoba RCMP. “That work remains ongoing as part of our commitment to protect the safety and security of the communities we serve.”
The investigation uncovered a criminal organization that arranged the shipment, processing, packaging and transportation of drugs into the community, including cocaine, oxycodone, fentanyl and carfentanil. Individuals working within the organization then distributed the drugs to local traffickers while handling collection and payments, enforcement and the storage and dissemination of weapons.
During the investigation, RCMP found some buyers purchasing oxycodone pills were instead given fentanyl, a more powerful and deadly drug. The investigation also revealed that float planes were being used to fly large quantities of alcohol into the community to bootleg to residents.
In total, 51 charges have been laid so far against 27 suspects as part of Project Derry. Eighteen of the 27 suspects live on the Bunibonibee Cree Nation, with the remaining suspects from Winnipeg and Thompson. Further arrests and charges are expected.
Police say that Luke Grieves, the suspected leader of the criminal network, was arrested while in custody at Milner Ridge Correctional Centre and charged with conspiracy to traffic a controlled substance and trafficking a controlled substance. Grieves, 33, has also been charged with criminal organization-related offences. He remains in custody.
Sixteen other suspects were charged with conspiracy to traffic a controlled substance and trafficking a controlled substance. An additional nine suspects were charged with possession of a controlled substance for the purpose of trafficking.
RCMP report that 22 of the 23 suspects arrested remain in custody. Four others are being sought by RCMP to face charges.
Officers noted that nine firearms, approximately two kilograms of cocaine packaged for sale and hundreds of oxycodone and fentanyl pills were seized, as was a small amount of carfentanil. Hundreds of liquor bottles were also seized.
The investigation has had a noticeable impact on public safety in the past six weeks, following a series of arrests made on the Bunibonibee Cree Nation in November. Calls for service to Oxford House RCMP were nearly halved in November from the previous month. For the first week of December, Oxford House RCMP saw a 67 per cent reduction in calls for service from the same time last year.
