Toronto police raids snare 71 gang suspects
Last Updated: Tuesday, May 4, 2010 | 2:29 PM ET
Comments 94 Recommend 89
CBC News
Toronto police Chief William Blair speaks to reporters on Tuesday about a series of raids that were conducted across Ontario earlier in the day. (Cheryl Krawchuk/CBC)
Police arrested 71 suspected gang members Tuesday and seized guns, drugs, money and cars in raids designed to end an outbreak of gun violence in northwest Toronto neighbourhoods.
Chief William Blair said his force has smashed two dangerous gangs — the Falstaff Crips and the Five Points Generals — which have “quite frankly terrorized the neighbourhoods in which they operate.”
In a series of early morning raids 1,000 police from 19 jurisdictions executed more than 100 search warrants in the Greater Toronto Area and as far as Ottawa.
Besides the 71 arrests, police seized 10 firearms, $30,000 in cash, $10,500 in casino cheques, cocaine, crack cocaine, marijuana, hashish oil and vehicles.
Project Corral, as police dubbed their investigation, was started in August 2009 after a spike in violence in the city’s northwest.
It turned into a deep investigation into the activities of the Shower Posse — a Jamaican organized crime gang — that was supplying drugs and guns to the Falstaff Crips and the Five Points Generals.
“[The two gangs] allegedly trafficked in cocaine and marijuana at street level and were responsible for firearms trafficking and possession of firearms between various gang members,” said a news release from the Toronto police.
Police said the Jamaican gang is a well-organized criminal group that used the other gangs to carry out street level deals and to terrorize the neighbourhoods in Toronto and beyond.
“The investigation showed the Shower Posse were allegedly responsible for a significant part of the drug trade, not only in Toronto and the Greater Toronto Area, but as far north as Sault Ste. Marie, west to Windsor and east to Ottawa,” police said.
The arrests “are making our community safer,” said Blair. “I think we’re going to make a difference.”
Police also said the investigation may have uncovered more information about two homicides in the neighbourhood.
The deaths of Aeron Grant, 19, in December 2009 and Tryell Duffus, 22, in February 2010, are related to Project Corral, police said, but would not give any further details.
