Revised - The RCMP on Wednesday laid out their haul of illicit goods seized during last week’s arrest of Taylor Duke on the Takhini Hot Springs Road.

The confiscated items consisted of 11 firearms, including fully automatic weapons, an AR-15 and an Uzi with a silencer, plus thousands of doses of heroin, cocaine and other drugs, along with more than $163,887 in cash.

“The drugs and firearms, seized through this investigation, represent a significant disruption to drug trafficking and potential violence in the territory,” RCMP Supt. Lindsay Ellis told a press conference.

On Aug. 24, about 20 to 30 RCMP officers descended on the Takhini Hot Springs Road to arrest the 21-year-old Duke on accusations of attempted murder and for failing to appear in court to face charges alleging his involvement in drug trafficking and organized crime.

With the help of police units from Alberta and the Northwest Territories, Yukon RCMP were able to arrest Duke without anyone being hurt, despite the presence of a significant number of illegal firearms at the scene.

“Due to the history of violence and suspected illegal possession of firearms, the RCMP’s response was planned and conducted to ensure the safety of everyone involved and the success of the search warrant,” Ellis said.

Police had been looking for Duke since December 2022, according to Ellis, after he skipped court dates related to charges resulting from a previous raid involving the seizure of large amounts of drugs, money and firearms.

“The arrest was effected safely and without incident,” Ellis said.

Duke now faces 25 charges, including those from the past arrests and an accusation of attempted murder for allegedly shooting an individual on Long Lake Road on July 10.

Ellis said he will likely face more charges as the RCMP process evidence.

Firearms impounded by police in the recent raid include five carbine rifles, two handguns, two 12-guage shotguns, an Uzi and a bolt-action rifle.

Under a previous court order, Duke was prohibited from posses-sing any firearms.

Drugs found at the scene include 1.5 kilograms of cocaine, 637 grams of heroin, 7.4 grams of methamphetamine, 127 grams of fentanyl, 663 Xanax pills, 325 unknown capsules and 551 grams of what police believe to be a common cutting agent called “superbuff”.

Describing the seizure as “exceptionally large and significant,” Ellis said this would represent more than 5,000 doses of cocaine and more than 6,300 doses of heroin.

This represents more drugs, guns and money than were seized during last summer’s raids dubbed by police as Project Monterey, in which Duke was arrested along with eight others.

That 2022 investigation resulted in the confiscation of two handguns, drugs, including cocaine and fentanyl, and about $148,000.

Of the eight arrested in the Project Monterey raids, two had their charges stayed, one pled guilty to a single count and was sent to jail for 22 months, while the other five, including Duke, still have cases in progress.

Three of the accused in the Project Monterey case have been released on bail, while one – Travis Evans – remains in custody after being denied release Thursday afternoon.

The Project Monterey investigation began in November 2021. Duke had previously been arrested on alleged cocaine trafficking charges in May of that year.

One of the provisions of Duke’s release from jail after the Project Monterey arrest – initially granted to seek addiction treatment at Acorn Recovery Living in Surrey, B.C. – was that he was not to associate with some of the individuals co-accused in the case.

Several of them were charged with allegedly participating in the activities of a criminal organization as a result of Project Monterey.

This includes Evans, Dominic Cormier, who posted $3,000 bail on July 17, and Rodney Bailey, who is the individual who pled guilty to one count in May and received the jail term.

An RCMP statement from the time said the organized crime charge had been rarely, if ever, used in the Yukon.

For this charge to be levied, there needs to be three or more individuals committing a crime for financial benefit.

“Whitehorse and the Yukon as a whole is not exempt from the reach of organized crime,” Ellis told Wednesday’s press conference.

Ellis said that basically once drug trafficking reaches a certain level, it inevitably becomes organized crime.

“Anyone who is involved in the drug trade at a certain level is related to organized crime,” she said.

This also leads to violence, Ellis added.

“The formula behind much of the violence associated with organized crime is quite simple; possessing quantities of drugs gives the perception that there’s money to be made, which often leads to competition and conflict,” she said.

She also referenced a 2020 report on organized crime in the Yukon in which the RCMP detailed the pervasiveness of organized crime in the territory.

“It was clear through that report that there’s five organized crime networks working at any given time,” Ellis said.

“I think it’s safe to say that those are in every community here in the Yukon.”