Canadian Mounties bust large-scale drug ‘superlab’ linked to transnational organized crime

VANCOUVER, British Columbia – Canadian police dismantled the country’s largest and most advanced illegal drug “superlab” on Thursday.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police believe organized crime led the operation that involved mass production and distribution of fentanyl and methamphetamine in Canada and internationally.

Officers served search warrants last week at the drug lab in Falkland, British Columbia, and associated locations in Surrey, in Metro Vancouver.

Police said they seized 54 kilos of fentanyl, “massive” amounts of precursor chemicals, 390 kilos of methamphetamine and smaller amounts of cocaine, MDMA and cannabis.

They also found a total of 89 firearms, including pistols, rifles and AR-15-style submachine guns, as well as small explosives, ammunition, silencers, high-capacity magazines, body armor and $500,000 Canadian (US$359,000) in cash. .

Investigators said a suspect, Gaganpreet Randhawa, has been arrested and is in custody facing numerous drug and firearms-related charges.

Fentanyl is a key ingredient in many of the toxic illegal drugs that the Canadian government says killed nearly 48,000 people across Canada between January 2016 and March 2024.