Prince George RCMP's latest drug bust highlights the growing popularity of pills, and the
cross-generational aspect of the illicit material as well.
Two local elderly men are facing charges for a cache of more than 1,000 pills of various kinds - Diazepam, Clonazepam, Lorazepam, Alprazolam - allegedly obtained through illegal means and
intended for the black market.
The two men now charged are 81 and 75 years old. The drugs were found at the 81-year-old's home in the vicinity of 10th Avenue and Douglas Street.
The cache of drugs was made up of more than 12 different brands, under prescriptions made out to people not associated with the residence.
"We don't know if there was identity theft being used, or aliases, or accomplices, or theft, or just how these two men came to have all these drugs. That is part of the investigation," said Prince George RCMP spokesman Cpl. Craig Douglass.
Police did not stumble upon the drugs by
accident.
They arrived at the suspect's house on Wednesday evening armed with a search warrant.
"There have been people in the neighbourhood who have been concerned about that location for quite some time," Douglass said.
"It is certainly not unusual to find prescription drugs at a typical drug house, but it is unusual that this warrant was specific to prescription drugs and it was a house that was not associated to the selling of illegal [street] drugs.
"When we bust crackshacks, we consistently find prescription drugs there but not in this volume, and it is not the primary
commodity for sale in those places."
Thieves will frequently target medicine cabinets and bedside night-stands during break-ins because there is an active street demand.
Douglass said the pills were current prescriptions made out in other people's names in amounts believed to be too large for one person's medical needs.
"We can't get into [the health particulars of the two suspects], but some of the prescriptions found were definitely in their names and certainly people do need medications, so legitimate medications are OK for them to possess and they will not be charged for personal use prescriptions appropriately obtained from a doctor," Douglass said.
"We believe they had other motives for these drugs and we believe they did not obtain them through legitimate means and we will be explaining our position during the court process."
Both suspects "have a history with police," said Douglass, but added that they were not habitual offenders, but had crossed paths with law enforcement in the past.
The two had been suspects in this matter since at least the third week of September.
Samples of the seized drugs are scheduled for analysis at an RCMP lab.
Anyone with information about these allegations or any drug trafficking in Prince George, please contact the Prince George RCMP at (250)561-3300 or anonymously contact Crime Stoppers at 1(800)222-TIPS (8477), online at
www.pgcrimestoppers.bc.ca, or Text-A-Tip to CRIMES using keyword "pgtips".
