Residents of sleepy Falkland, B.C., are still wrapping their heads around the news that their tiny town was home to what police have described as the largest and most sophisticated drug superlab in Canada.
On Thursday, the RCMP announced it had busted the lab operation. CBC News has learned it was located on a remote 66-hectare property on Hoath Road.
Investigators seized 54 kilograms of fentanyl, a large volume of precursor chemicals, 390 kilograms of methamphetamine, 35 kilograms of cocaine, 15 kilograms of MDMA, six kilograms of cannabis, along with 89 firearms including handguns, AR-15-style rifles and submachine guns.
Mike Warren, who moved to Falkland only a few weeks ago, calls it a “drive-thru town” and likened the drug bust to a scene out of the hit TV show Breaking Bad.
“This is a quaint, quiet and low-key little village,” he said. “It’s kinda a surprise.”
Falkland sits on Highway 97 between much larger Kamloops and Vernon. The unincorporated community has fewer than 1,000 residents and is best known for its giant hillside Canadian flag and annual Falkland Stampede.
Janice and Kevin Evans manage the Falkland Faith Mission Retreat Centre, located just down the road from where the drug lab was raided.
According to the couple, police carried out a major raid on the same property approximately 10 years ago — before marijuana was legalized — shutting down a large grow operation. The Evans said the damaged greenhouses shown in the police-issued photos were previously used to grow marijuana.
“When things were legalized, we just thought [the property owners] were carrying on under the law,” said Kevin Evans. “It is surprising to see that they have grown it up much bigger and much more serious.”
According to Janice Evans, Falkland is appealing to some for its remoteness.
“A lot of people live here because it’s private,” she said. “You don’t need building permits.”
A search of the drug lab property also uncovered small explosive devices, large amounts of ammunition, firearm silencers, high-capacity magazines, body armour and $500,000 in cash, according to RCMP.
Related searches in other locations resulted in the seizure of another 310 kilograms of methamphetamine destined for international markets, they said.
Only one man has been arrested so far. According to court records, Gaganpreet Singh Randhawa is facing seven criminal drugs and weapons charges for alleged offences in Surrey and Richmond.
- Attempt to export methamphetamine.
- Unlawful possession of methamphetamine, cocaine and fentanyl for the purpose of trafficking.
- Possession of prohibited or unlicenced firearms and silencers.
- Possession of firearms and silencers while prohibited.
- Unlawful possession of an explosive substance.
Online court records show that a person with the same name and birth year was sentenced to 90 days in jail and handed a 10-year firearms ban in 2017 after being found guilty of drug possession for the purpose of trafficking in Burnaby.
RCMP has identified Randhawa as the “main suspect.” They say the value of drugs and guns seized is close to half a billion dollars.