Christmas package leads to drug charges in Kelowna

KELOWNA – A Christmas package destined for Kelowna was actually filled with drugs and two Kelowna residents are now facing multiple charges.

Officers became aware of an overseas shipment destined for a Kelowna address on Dec. 11. Officers in the Kelowna RCMP Drug Section believed the shipment contained 100 litres of Gamma Butyrolactone, commonly known as GBL and a precursor for Gamma-Hydroxybutyrate, a controlled substance also known as GHB.

Five days later the officers investigated the address associated with the suspicious package, in the 400 block of Neave Court in Kelowna. A man and a woman were arrested for importing a class A precursor and taken into custody.

Officers returned with a search warrant the next day and found a used industrial grade pill press believed to be contaminated with fentanyl, and a loaded short barrel shotgun.

Const. Jesse O'Donaghey says the shipment had the potential to produce up to 20,000 doses of GHB and would’ve had a street value of about $200,000.

A 22-year-old Kelowna woman and a 28-year-old West Kelowna man are each facing potential charges including importing a substance, production for the purpose of trafficking, possession for the purpose of trafficking and possession and unsafe storage of a firearm.

Both were released and are expected to appear in court on March 21.

To contact a reporter for this story, email Adam Proskiw at aproskiw@infonews.ca or call 250-718-0428. To contact the editor, email mjones@infonews.ca or call 250-718-2724.