Record drug bust at border

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This article was published 31/01/2024 (776 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A Winnipeg man has been implicated in the largest drug bust in history on the Prairies — 406 kilograms of methamphetamine, which RCMP say could be sold on the street for $50.7 million.

Canada Border Services Agency officers discovered the massive haul of meth while inspecting a commercial truck at the Boissevain port of entry this month.

“This is an extraordinary seizure,” RCMP Insp. Joe Telus said Wednesday at a joint news conference with agency officials at RCMP D Division headquarters in Winnipeg.

“Given the amount of the drugs that were located we have a lot of investigative work to do. Normally, this type of seizure is the result of an extensive, years-long investigation. In this instance, we have a massive quantity of drugs and now need to work backward and look at every detail.”

Komalpreet Sidhu, 29, was arrested on Jan. 14, after border officers searched his truck and found 200 packages of meth in several large suitcases, officials said.

The packaged drugs, which were the equivalent of four million doses, were displayed during the news conference.

Sidhu, who was behind the wheel of a semi-truck that was towing a single trailer, tried to cross the 24-hour border at Boissevain, 100 kilometres south of Brandon, around 10 p.m., said Ken MacGregor of the federal border agency.

The agency employs a “risk-assessment approach” for commercial loads that enter Canada, MacGregor said, noting that most trucks are permitted to drive into the country without delay.

“Based on indicators, however, this truck was selected for further examination. It was during that examination our officers found narcotics.”

Telus said the truck is linked to a Manitoba trucking company. Its route originated in the U.S. and its destination was Winnipeg.

RCMP wouldn’t divulge the name of the trucking company and could not confirm whether Sidhu was an employee, but said investigators are in contact with the company.

Court records show Sidhu has no criminal convictions in Manitoba. He is scheduled to appear in court in Brandon on Thursday.

The size of the shipment has led investigators to believe local, national and international criminal organizations may be involved.

Telus said RCMP are working with the border agency, other Canadian officials and international drug enforcement agencies on the investigation.

“Every aspect of the semi’s journey from the United States to Boissevain, as well as its final destination in Winnipeg, is being thoroughly investigated,” Telus said.

He could not say where the drugs were believed to be manufactured.

Police believe the drugs would likely have been distributed throughout Manitoba and possibly into parts of Western Canada and Ontario, he said, noting the investigation will be complicated.

“Usually… we work the investigation and it leads to the seizure. This time around, we have the commodity, but we need to find out exactly where it came from and what they intended to do with it,” Telus said.

“We have gathered some preliminary information so far, and know now some of the details about the transport. However, we are not in a position to share this information publicly at this time.”

The inspector pointed out meth is an “incredibly dangerous drug” linked to violent incidents.

The drugs will be destroyed, he said.

—With files from Erik Pindera

tyler.searle@freepress.mb.ca