A Saanich man is accused of using high-speed boats to smuggle more than 100 kilograms of illicit drugs between the U.S. and Canada.
William Milton Barnes, 51, was one of two men arrested after a six-month, cross-border investigation by RCMP, the U.S. Coast Guard and U.S. Homeland Security.
Investigators watched a speed boat from Canada meet up with a boat travelling from the U.S. and saw large bags passed from one boat to another in Washington’s San Juan Islands, east of Victoria.
RCMP Chief Supt. Keith Finn said police seized 55 kilograms of cocaine, 47 kilograms of crystal methamphetamine and a kilogram of heroin after one of the boats docked in Canada on Feb. 23, 2017.
Officers seized two high-speed boats, 15 firearms, ammunition and $150,000 in cash.
Barnes was arrested that day and charged in March 2018.
He is charged with 11 drug and gun offences, including unlawfully importing a controlled substance, possession for the purpose of trafficking, possession of property obtained by crime and possession of a prohibited device — a .45-calibre Glock handgun.
Barnes was released on bail with strict conditions. He is not allowed to go within one nautical mile of the U.S.-Canada border, possess any firearms or possess or consume any drugs.
Police also arrested a Washington man, Gary Horton, who has pleaded guilty to trafficking-related charges.
He will be sentenced in September.
The arrests came as a result of the Shiprider program, in which law enforcement officers from Canada and the U.S. pair up to patrol both sides of the border and prevent cross-border smuggling and trafficking.
Finn said programs such as Shiprider allow the RCMP and U.S. law enforcement partners “to identify and disrupt cross-border illegal activity that takes place on the ocean, and hold those that wish to hide behind international borders accountable.”
Brad Bench, the special agent in charge of Homeland Security Investigations for the Seattle area, said the investigation is a testament to the collaboration involved in the Shiprider program.
“The teamwork exhibited by Shiprider’s U.S. and Canadian law enforcement partners ensures that our borders don’t serve as conduits for smuggling and trafficking activities,” Bench said.
— With files from The Canadian Press
