The RCMP have revealed that the three biggest airports in Canada, located in Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver, have been infiltrated by an estimated 58 organized crime groups. The report suggests that more than 1000 members of organized crime factions, including about 300 airport employees, were involved in this nation wide conspiracy to bring drugs, goods and people into the country.
The drugs?
Apparently the primary drug brought into the country is Khat. This is an East African plant that can be chewed to illicit a narcotic effect. This is only the second time I have heard anything about this drug. The first time was at a fair trade coffee symposium at the University of Guelph which talked about the rampant growing of Khat in the horn of Africa. The speaker thought that awarding copyright protection to high quality beans from Ethiopia would allow for a higher value placed on the community grown coffee and make it more profitable than the competing crop, Khat. It is rather surprising that such a drug would be so popular in Canada, or that the transhipment point for the product is Britain where it is apparently legal. Ottawa, Montreal and Toronto were all listed as destination ports for this product.
It was also found that Vancouver was a popular destination for Caribbean cocaine whereas Toronto seemed to be where Heroin was being shipped. I always thought that those two cities tended to have the opposing vice? Not to mention Toronto is closer to the Caribbean and Vancouver is closer to the Far East where most of the poppy seeds are grown.
Organized Crime groups apparently tried to help their spouses and members get jobs at the airport as security guards, baggage handlers and customs agents while trying to subvert those already in positions of authority.
The report stated that checking employees upon both entry and exit of the terminals and more background checks for the employees is needed to reduce the illegal shipments that manage to get through port security. When you leave work at a retail store they check your bag to make sure you didn't steal socks yet it is not considered prudent to check airport employees to make sure they aren't hiding cocaine in their pocket after leaving work?! Likewise retailers may ask for you to order a criminal check before hiring you to make sure they can trust you with a few hundred dollars so how can airport security contractors, of all profession, not do the same?
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the lastest thing to come out of the corporate offices of the Rcmp ( roman catholic member of parliment ) is that the city of vancouver has become the hub of gang related crime in canada. Since that announcment was made they have averaged one to two gang related deaths a week in that city
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