Canadian police bust 'drug superlab' seizing record amount of fentanyl, weapons
Canadian police said Thursday that they had busted the "largest and most sophisticated fentanyl and methamphetamine drug superlab" in the country, seizing large amounts of drugs, weapons, ammunition and cash in the process.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) said that they executed search warrants on the drug lab in Falkland, British Columbia, as well as other associated locations in the greater metro Vancouver area on Oct. 25.
Canadian police officials described the drug lab as being at the center of an organized criminal operation involving the mass production and distribution of fentanyl and methamphetamine, both in Canada and internationally.
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Drugs, firearms discovered
Among the material seized, according to police, was 54 kilograms of fentanyl, "massive amounts of precursor chemicals," 390 kilograms of methamphetamine, as well as smaller amounts of cocaine, MDMA and cannabis.
Police also found 89 firearms, including handguns, submachine guns and AR-15-style rifles, as well as small explosive devices, large quantities of ammunition, silencers, high-capacity magazines, body armor and $500,000 in Canadian, equivalent to roughly $360,000 in US dollars.
Nine of the recovered weapons were reportedly stolen, according to police.
Canadian authorities said that a suspect, identified as Gaganpreet Randhawa, was arrested and was in custody, having been charged with multiple drug and firearms-related offenses.
"This is undoubtedly a major blow to the transnational organized crime groups involved, and a great step towards ensuring the safety of Canadians, and the international community," said Jillian Wellard, Officer in Charge of Federal Policing Pacific Region.
This story has been updated to add pictures.
Max Hauptman is a Trending Reporter for USA TODAY. He can be reached at MHauptman@gannett.com
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Canadian police bust massive drug lab linked to organized crime ring