Two men in their 30s have been arrested after a spike in property crime in a Saanich neighbourhood led police to find loaded firearms and suspected fentanyl, among other items, at their residence.
In a statement released Friday, Saanich Police say they have arrested two men, 34 and 38, after a month long investigation into the cause of a spike in property crime in the Travino Lane area.
Investigators gathered information that led them to a suite in the 700 block of Travino
Lane and, on the morning of August 28, police and Greater Victoria Response Team worked to arrest the two men associated with the suite.
A search warrant for the apartment was executed in relation to the investigation, and officers seized several items including a loaded 9mm handgun, thousands of dollars in cash, a ballistic vest, and drugs believed to be fentanyl and cocaine.
“Drug Experts at our department confirm that this purple fentanyl is traditionally found to be an extremely potent illicit drug,” said Cst. Markus Anastasiades in a statement.
“As we know, fentanyl has been linked to the drug overdose crisis in BC so being able to remove this as well as the firearm from the street is a huge success.”
One of the two men remains in custody at this time, and police are recommending charges of unauthorized possession of a restricted firearm, unsafe storage of a firearm, and offences related to drug trafficking against both.
The names of the suspects have not been released as the charges have not been sworn in court yet.
