Businessmen on Rue Saint-Germain in the Saint-Laurent district witnessed a scene worthy of a catastrophe or a science fiction film on Thursday morning: police officers from the Royal Gendarmerie of Canada, dressed in protective suits, searched a building in dissolution secret synthetic drug laboratories.
Posted at 3:06 p.m.
Police officers with the RCMP's Clandestine Laboratory Response Unit don this suit in case they come into contact with dangerous products, which was not the case Thursday morning.
The search was conducted as part of an investigation by the RCMP's Joint Organized Crime Investigation Unit (UMÉCO), Branch C (Quebec).
Three additional searches were also carried out in the Hochelaga-Maisonneuve, Rosemont and Lachine districts, involving a total of around forty police officers.
Five people were arrested but released pending further investigation. They are expected to appear in court at a later date and will likely be charged with manufacturing controlled substances and manufacturing controlled substances for the purpose of trafficking.
The names of the suspects have not been released. We do not know the amount of products and medicines seized, nor the type of equipment found.
PHOTO PATRICK SANFAÇON, THE PRESS
Officers from the RCMP's Clandestine Laboratory Response Unit were the first to enter the premises housing the clandestine laboratory and cautiously examined what was inside.
It is not known whether the dismantled network is connected to a criminal organization.
RCMP spokesman Corporal Érique Gasse said investigators may need two more days to inventory the items found in the lab.
The federal police could take stock of the searches on Friday.
To contact Daniel Renaud, call 514 285-7000, extension 4918, write to [email protected] or write to La Presse's mailing address.