Vancouver Secrets

Is The Declining Pot Market Behind The Killings?

Twelve shootings in 16 days in Vancouver:

Darryl Plecas, a criminology professor at the University of the Fraser Valley in Abbotsford, B.C., said the increase in shootings can be linked to the drug market’s very own recession.

“The drug market exploded up until a couple of years ago, which explains why all of a sudden we had so many gangs, so many people wanting to get in on the action,” Plecas said.

But in the last couple of years that drug market has shrunk, he said.

“So if you have more people vying for the same market share, then we should expect there’s going to be turf wars going on.”

On Tuesday, federal Solicitor General Peter Van Loan labelled Metro Vancouver the country’s gang capital.

Plecas said that’s not surprising.

“This is where the grows (marijuana growing operations) started. You can’t have 20,000 plus grows and not have some fallout,” he said.

Robert Gordon, director of the criminology department at Simon Fraser University, said Metro Vancouver’s geographical location plays a major role in organized crime activity.

“We’ve evolved into one of the more lucrative marijuana production regions in North America,” he said. “Some of that has to do with climate but a lot of it has to do with simply our position on the coast and in particular, being in close proximity to the U.S. border.”

He said the marijuana industry has flourished in the Metro Vancouver area.

Gordon said the illegal drug trade in the region was destabilized when police cracked down on one particular group located in the Fraser Valley.

“That would have created a vacuum in the industry,” he said. “There may be manoeuvring going on to grab market share.”

This should give ammo to the argument on legalizing marijuana…

It might be time to let the professional gangs handle the sales – The BC Liquor Control Board.

photo credit: splifr