Nearly a month after Sault Police launched Project H.E.A.T. (High Enforcement Action Team), formed to clamp down on drug trade-related crime within the community, Sault Police Chief Hugh Stevenson presented a table full of weapons, drugs and drug trade-related cash the new team has seized from the streets of the Sault at a news conference held at the Sault Ste. Marie Police Service building Tuesday.
Seized weapons on display included a sawed off rifle, smaller handguns that are used in the drug trade as well as a heavier 12 gauge shotgun and a rifle.
Stevenson declined to comment when asked if any of the seized weapons have been linked to any deaths or inflicting of wounds locally.
“I don’t think I should go ahead and talk about what’s before the courts.”
“This is an example of what good old traditional policing can get off the street,” Stevenson said.
“This weaponry and drugs and cash is exactly what’s plaguing this community...we’ve been able to, in one month, get what you’ve seen here as well as other stuff that’s being processed in ident.”
“This stuff you see in front of you is a plague.”
40 grams of fentanyl, 30 grams of crystal meth 19 grams of heroin, 121 grams of cocaine and 15 grams of marijuana were laid out for reporters to view.
$2,500 dollars in seized cash from the drug trade was on the table.
“This crystal meth is what’s destroying communities across Ontario,” Stevenson said, pointing to bags containing 2,000 tablets of the substance.
“It (the local drug trade) is generically in the downtown core and it’s generically where our officers are working to ensure we respond to the community’s needs in improving the safety and security of that area,” Stevenson told SooToday.
“We need your help (the community) in letting us know who’s selling this stuff in our community and who’s making money off this stuff because this stuff doesn’t come to a community on it’s own, it comes through organized crime.”
“Our goal is to get this stuff off the street, find out who’s selling it and prosecute them to the fullest extent of the law."
As reported earlier by SooToday, Project H.E.A.T., launched July 2, consists of a beefed up police presence from 3 p.m. to 3 a.m., including more uniformed officers as well as plainclothes officers on patrol, bicycle patrols and beat officers in the downtown core.
“This is an example of one month’s work where we went back to basics...we have our officers in the downtown core responding to the community’s needs of having more exposure.”
“This is a success,” Stevenson said, adding Project H.E.A.T.’s work is not over and that continued success depends on help from the public.
“This is what we want the community to understand, this is what we’re doing out there and we can’t do it without the support of the community.”
A Facebook group named Neighborhood Watch in Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., has been launched by concerned residents as an information sharing tool to fight crime.
The group has approximately 4,000 members.
Stevenson said he has been in contact with one of the group’s administrators.
“My comments were ‘that’s excellent.’ Keep telling us the information, where you see these hot spots, we’ll get our officers down there and we’ll continue to do more of this. Our goal is to clean these streets up.”
Stevenson said over the past month, Project H.E.A.T.’s work has led to 70 arrests, the laying of 127 criminal charges and the executing of 31 outstanding warrants.
Street value of drugs seized and on display Tuesday was approximately $18,000.
“To me it’s not always the value of the drugs, it’s the impact it’s making on your community.”
“That impact is a lot more than $18,000, I can tell you that, in terms of what the drug industry does to our community, to our friends, to our families, to business, to the community.”
“One thing I’ve noticed in the last month...the fact we’re starting to do this, more people are coming forward. This creates a greater hope out there that the information you give us will actually result in taking this stuff off the street and people are being held accountable, criminally and otherwise.”
“It’s not about punishing the user necessarily, it’s about punishing the supply chain that supplies this to the user. There’s the crime prevention piece where we try to help and treat these people but we also try to go after the people that are selling and distributing this for economic gain in this community.”
Stevenson said Project H.E.A.T will continue through to the end of September, “but we’ll reevaluate at that time.”
“There’s no reason why we can’t continue it after that point.”
Stevenson said the public may call police, Crime Stoppers or email Project HEAT to assist police with tips in fighting the drug trade.
“We’ll follow up whether it’s social media, whether it’s people stopping our officers on the street, whether they stop the chief coming to work, we are all open to gathering information.”