Six of 12 arrested in B.C. drug sting are women

NELSON, B.C. – Six of 12 people arrested in a major three-month undercover drug operation in the B.C. interior are women.

Police executed arrest warrants after the operation which drew investigators from across the B.C., said  Inspector Nick Romanchuk.

Six of those scooped up were women suspected of being cocaine dealers.

Police could not be reached for comment early Tuesday morning about the changing gender roles in drug trafficking.

“This investigation used police resources from throughout British Columbia, which allowed investigators to utilize a number of advanced investigational techniques to target the trafficking of controlled substances in our communities,”

Drug trafficking has become a major problem within the West Kootenay area including Trail, Castlegar, Grand Forks and Kaslo. The operation targeted suspected traffickers in cocaine and marijuana.

“Each and every one of the communities within the West  Kootenay/Boundary has identified the issue of drug trafficking and organized crime as one of their primary policing concerns,” said Romanchuk.

“ By proactively targeting this issue we believe that we are working towards meeting the expectations of our communities and taking significant steps forward in making those communities safer places for their citizens,” he said.

Castlegar Mayor Lawrence Chernoff, said regional policing has helped make the manpower available that allows for intensive police work.

“In the past, we were unable to do these sorts of things because of manpower issues, however, with the regional policing model and the sharing of resources we have achieved successes such as these,” he said.

Charged with trafficking are:

•  Crystal Patricia Kitcher, 41, of Trail, charged with two counts of           trafficking in cocaine.

•   Jane Marie Fenn, a 48-year-old female from Trail charged with one count of trafficking in cocaine. 

•  Adam Richard Leduc, 24, of Trail, charged with one count of trafficking in cocaine. 

•  Bruce Edmund Leeming, 55,  of  Trail charged with one count of trafficking in  cocaine. 

• Lisa Shannon Melville,42, of Trail, charged with two counts of trafficking in  cocaine. 

• Melody Grace Hutchinson, 19, of Trail, charged with one count of trafficking in  cocaine. 

• Lillian Alicia Lidstone, 21, of Grand Forks, charged with two counts of trafficking  in cocaine. 

• James Michael Henniger, 26, Grand Forks, charged with one count of trafficking  in cocaine. 

• Christopher Robert Mark, 23,  from Castlegar, charged with three counts of trafficking  in cocaine. 

• Natasha McCreight, 26, from Castlegar, charged with two counts of trafficking in cocaine. 

• David Alexander Jones, an 18 year old male from Kaslo charged with one count of  trafficking in  marijuana.

A warrant for the arrest of John Freeman, 30,  from Kaslo, is still outstanding. Freeman has been charged with one count of trafficking in marijuana.

Copyright 2009, Vancouverite News Service. Use this article on your blog or website for just $5. News organizations pay $25. To reproduce or distribute, click: http://vancouverite.icopyright.com

Related articles:

1. Missing 81-year-old from Grand Forks found dead
2. U.S. stops $650,000 worth of cocaine headed for Alberta