Photo by Whitehorse Star
CONFISCATED ITEMS – Cpl. Blake Wawryk is seen Monday at the Whitehorse RCMP detachment with some of the drugs, money and weapons police officers seized during last Thursday's major drug bust. Star photo by JUSTINE DAVIDSON
Photo by Whitehorse Star
CONFISCATED ITEMS – Cpl. Blake Wawryk is seen Monday at the Whitehorse RCMP detachment with some of the drugs, money and weapons police officers seized during last Thursday's major drug bust. Star photo by JUSTINE DAVIDSON
The fifth man wanted following a major bust by the Yukon RCMP's anti-drug squad has been arrested, according to court documents.
The fifth man wanted following a major bust by the Yukon RCMP's anti-drug squad has been arrested, according to court documents.
Ryan "Bobby” Derkson was arrested Tuesday without incident upon his arrival at the Erik Nielsen Whitehorse International Airport.
A warrant was issued for the 26-year-old man's arrest following a four-month undercover operation which relied heavily on information and evidence collected by a police informant, according to the RCMP.
Last Thursday, officers executed search warrants on two Copper Ridge homes.
They seized $120,000 in cash, several vehicles and a selection of weapons, including baseball bats and brass knuckles.
At the same time, they arrested four men and laid charges including conspiracy to traffic cocaine and possession of illegal substances.
An amount of cocaine and Ecstasy was also taken in by police during the raid.
However, as the head of the operation, Cpl. Blake Wawryk noted earlier this week the bulk of the drugs confiscated by police were delivered to them over the past four months by the informant who was recording purchases and communications on behalf of investigators.
The informant brought in more than a kilogram of cocaine and 1,300 tablets of the drug Ecstasy, Wawryk said.
During a press conference following the arrests, police alleged the men are "at the very top of the trafficking food chain.”
Derkson was one of the men police hoped to arrest at the time of the bust, but it was not until two days ago that the suspected drug trafficker was brought into custody.
Derkson and two of the men arrested last Thursday, Shaun "Duke” Naidu and Jesse Ritchie, were scheduled to appear in territorial court this afternoon to apply for bail.
Ritchie, 30, faces one count of conspiracy to traffic cocaine.
Naidu, 28, is up on three counts of drug possession, including Ecstasy and anabolic steroids; two counts of possession of property obtained by crime and one count of failure to comply with a probation order.
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Comments (4)
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mark land on Oct 5, 2009 at 8:27 am
yukon survivor,
it is not what weapons are involved, its the mass quanities of cash and drugs that are more important. This photo is excellent and applause to the rcmp for getting more of that crap off the street.
Francais, the cops can only do so much, it is our responsibility as citizens to report odd or suspicious behaviour to them. More drugs/criminals off the street is better than none
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Norhtern Warrior on Oct 4, 2009 at 6:05 pm
So this is a good start. Now don't make this as your bust of the century. Keep up the pressure and sit at the 98 and you will get twice this in one month. Keep up the good work and put these people where they belong -- in jail.
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yukon survivor on Oct 1, 2009 at 2:56 pm
hilarious picture though. Are you kidding me does 2 baseball bats a can of bear spray and a door stopper really need to be in the picture? I mean what is the point of this? Is it illegal in the yukon now to own any of these items?? you may as well have confiscated and included in the picture all these guys kitchen knives, tool sets etc.. lol I love these rcmp propoganda photo ops...your a superstar now officer!!
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Francias Pillman on Oct 1, 2009 at 6:50 am
But as I know and the RCMP knows these busts don't do a thing but insure their job security. As soon as these guys gt busted, people under them step up to the plate and fulfill a need that is demanded from addicts.