It is possible that Fraser Lake RCMP have taken down one of the last mom-and-pop marijuana grow-operations in Northern B.C.
The suspects did not appear, said Mounties, to have any overt connections to organized crime the way most grow-ops in this area do. They are a 52-year-old female and 60-year-old male who have lived for a longtime at the eastern end of Francois Lake.
This might conjure up images of modern hippies just trying to get by on the land in a pastoral rural setting in the forest. But the crop police found in their care had an estimated street value of, at minimum, $200,000.
"The RCMP seized 392 plants and about 90 pounds of marijuana from two separate buildings. A substantial quantity of the marijuana was packaged and ready for distribution. Also seized were a number of firearms," said Fraser Lake RCMP commander Staff Sgt. Rocky Calhoun.
The two have been charged with production of a controlled substance and possession for the purpose of trafficking. The 90 pounds was prepackaged and the growing plants filled a half-dozen garbage bags once harvested for evidence.
The firearms were not, according to one Mountie at the scene, loaded or improperly stored although the investigation is not finished so evidence still being assessed.
The two suspects were released on a promise to appear at a later court date.
