Canadian border officials made what they say is likely the largest narcotics seizure in the history of Canada’s Western provinces, finding 896 pounds of alleged methamphetamine at the Boissevain port of entry in southern Manitoba.
The suspected drugs seized add up to around 4 million doses of methamphetamine, with an estimated street value of more than $50.7 million, according to a news release.
“This is the largest seizure of narcotics our border officers have ever made in the Prairies,” Janalee Bell-Boychuk, regional director general of the Prairie region for the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA), said in a statement. “Thanks to their quick and decisive action, more than 400 kilograms of methamphetamine were kept off our streets.”
The Canadian Prairies in western Canada consists of the provinces of Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba.
The seizure occurred Jan. 14 and officials announced details of the case on Wednesday. CBSA officers discovered the suspected methamphetamine while checking a truck that was crossing from North Dakota into Canada at the Boissevain port of entry.
The shipment was heading for the city of Winnipeg. Authorities did not provide information on any other type of freight the truck was carrying.
The driver has been identified as Komalpreet Sidhu, a 29-year-old man from Winnipeg. He was taken into custody by the Manitoba branch of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.
Sidhu faces charges of importation of methamphetamine and possession of a controlled substance for the purpose of trafficking.
His arrest follows another case involving Canadian long-haul truckers charged with taking part in a drug ring that smuggled and transported cocaine and methamphetamine from Mexico to California and eventually across the Canadian border.
FBI alleges Mexican cartel, Canadian truckers part of drug ring