The household remedy that started a major RCMP drug investigation in Enderby
VERNON – When authorities raided an Enderby business and lodging house last week, they noticed a horrible smell from a weird substance growing in a jar and called in the RCMP's drug lab unit from Vancouver—complete with full-body suits and gas masks.
But your average health nut might have immediately recognized it as a home-made health supplement called Kombucha.
Ben Fulton, property manager and resident of the Gypsy Bazaar, says the amber-coloured liquid contained in the jars at the centre of last week’s police investigation was a fermented drink made of tea, sugar, bacteria and yeast. Sometimes called mushroom tea for the gelatinous-looking glob floating atop the liquid, the drink is taken to combat cancer, arthritis, and a host of other ailments.
“It’s a medicinal drink that’s thousands of years old,” Fulton says. “Several corporations even have cans you can get at the grocery store.”
He says while the substance may look a little bizarre to the untrained eye, it’s completely legal. He doesn’t anticipate any criminal charges will come from what he calls a bogus police investigation started by local officials wanting to find “any excuse to condemn the building.”
“I feel like it was basically just a plan because they were hoping to find something illegal, and now that they haven’t there’s really no apologies forthcoming,” Fulton says.
RCMP spokesperson Gord Molendyk says the lab team removed equipment and chemicals that will be sent to Health Canada for analysis.
“(We) don’t know what we’re dealing with, so we bring in our specialized team who works with that and Health Canada will determine what it is in the end and whether or not applicable charges should be laid,” Molendyk says.
Fulton says tenants have until Mar. 1 to remove all their possessions from the building. One family was put up in a local hotel, but others are sleeping in homeless shelters, and in some cases, under bridges, Fulton says.
“When they shut us down, there’s basically no place for these people to go,” Fulton says.
A number of building codes are currently not being met, and Fulton says the plan is to put the building up for sale sometime in the near future.
To contact the reporter for this story, email Charlotte Helston at chelston@infonews.ca or call 250-309-5230. To contact the editor, email mjones@infonews.ca or call 250-718-2724.
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31 responses
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you are vulnerable if you are getting welfare checks..that is the reality..best figure you some system of independent support.
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Andrew Harvey”fire hazard” is code for we don’t like you..and this is a pretty iron clad excuse..ie not questioned.Having saidthat it is always wise to look around re candles and substances that could be a problem..anyhow..although it doesn’t sound like that was the case here.and keep a box of sad near the stove..this works great re kitchen fires.If there is a lot of clutter..that is often an excuse for the dreaded words “fire hazard” which pretty much means they want you out.If it is building management’s fault they need to fix it..re windows etc..if it’s your building..then you do have to follow building codes..I know a lot don’t..but you are not under the radar now. baking soda I meant.
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oh they will never apologize..they are too big for that..or small depending on how you look at it.
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lol..I thought so..I whole team tore my car apart at the border..because the peppermint smell was suspicious.I like peppermint myself..perhaps it was in informal training exercise? Just kidding..perhaps they had never smelled peppermint before.
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Maureen Gabert all journalism is selective–it’s all about the spin–they love their power, it’s the nature of the beast.
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This is more than ridiculous and what a total waste of resources.Good GRIEF RCMP………….I think there are more important things to focus on than this.
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These people deserve an apology from the city, the rcmp and charlotte helston, the reporter who chose to print her garbage before knowing the truth. I hope the people who were evicted finda home where they can continue t heir lifestyle. Shame on Enderby!
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Mandy Meow indeed. The reasoning behind OUR eviction was because of a minor “technical” fire separation between rooms, and a shortage of windows for fire escape. Valid concerns, yes, on the books, yes… but for how much longer will we let pieces of paper do the thinking for us? ;)In all reality of the situation, the walls were solid cement, and the only fire that would take place would be the result of someone lighting one, or being mindless while putting out a cigarette in our fully ventilated smoking room with solid cement walls.Most of us paid close attention to the place, looked out for one another, and were all around a very aware bunch. In my opinion, the likelihood of a fire to spontaneously combust was pretty slim, even NON EXISTENT..The authorities stated concern was for the loss of life due to a very LOW :”potential” fire risk… that just might happen to “happen”.SO what do they do? they offer to separate this community of friends and family, who were each others support, both physically and morally, and were held together by a mutual responsibility for one another in good spirit and community – remove us from a “potential” fire hazard using some fancy peice of paper to justify it, and then offer us FCC and code standard approved accommodations at a homeless shelter inhabited by drunks, violent offenders, suicides and psychotics. ANd then they strip you of any privacy, dignity or personal responsibility – and THEN have the balls to call it “an improvement”. I simply refused to accept their “help” and got a decent peaceful sleep under a bridge listening to the river go by…And then to top it off, now all being homeless, they smear our names to thousands of people all over BC, informing them that we were the “VICTIMS” of an illegal drug lab operation in a condemned building?Try getting a new place to rent with references like that!A public apology is due to anyone who participated in this move against us. You have not improved our lives. You did not save our lives. You did nothing but line your pockets and succeed at rendering a united, loving community into a fragmented and frightened few in living hell…THANKS. We can tell your concerns were so genuine.My question to anyone who think this is not right. What are we going to do about this? this is the modern STANDARD. And there is no one holding these people accountable for their lack of consideration for HUMANITY in their policies and “codes” least of all their relief efforts and public reporting.
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Antoinette Halberstadt indeed. The reasoning behind OUR eviction was because of a minor “technical” fire separation between rooms, and a shortage of windows for fire escape. Valid concerns, yes, on the books, yes… but for how much longer will we let pieces of paper do the thinking for us? ;)In all reality of the situation, the walls were solid cement, and the only fire that would take place would be the result of someone lighting one, or being mindless. Of which the most of us paid close attention, looked out for one another, and were all around a very aware bunch. In my opinion, the likelihood of a fire spontaneously com busting was pretty slim.The authorities stated concern was for the loss of life due to a very LOW :”potential” that just might happen to “happen”.SO what do they do? they offer to separate this community of friends and family, who were each others support, both physically and morally, and were held together by a mutual responsibility for one another in good spirit and community – remove us from a “potential” fire hazzard, and then offer us FCC and code standard approved accommodations at a homeless shelter inhabited by drunks, violent offenders,suicides and side show freaks – and THEN have the balls to call it “an improvement”.ANd then to top it off, now all being homeless, they smear our made to thousands of people all over BC, informing them that we were the “VICTIMS” of an illegal drug lab operation in a condemned building?Try getting a new place to rent with references like that!A public apology is due to anyone who participated in this move against us. You have not improved our lives. You did not save our lives. You did nothing but line your pockets and succeed at rendering a united, loving community into a fragmented few in living hell…THANKS. We can tell your concerns were so genuine.My question to anyone who think this is not right. What are we going to do about this? this is the modern STANDARD. And there is no one holding these people accountable for their lack of consideration for HUMANITY in their policies and “codes” let alone their relief efforts and public reporting.
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That really sounds like they are looking after the disadvantaged.An apology is the very least the RCMP can do.
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so much for being an “investigator” and not knowing what kombucha is.Or whatever “authority” figure had to call in the drug unit from vancouver……
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Actually it looks to me that they were evicted because the building was condemned, not because of the kombucha.Nevertheless, with no place to go that’s a sad state of affairs.
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wouldn’t a knock on the door and a question or two have brought the rcmp to the same conclusion without a raid? man the strongarm tactics and coyote pack mentality really have taken all the “to serve and protect” respect anyone ever had for the uniform.
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Charlotte Helston, should also be held accountable for not following up and reporting that there was nothing found there. I call this selective journalism.
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No warrant, no court order, no mercy shown to anyone.Time to stop people’s welfare cheques, time to gather every agency they could…BUT no time given to the residents of this HOME…not boarding house, HOME! and business…the method they were using to improve their lives with better food, shared labour, a venue for their handwork, a garden out front and back…now HOMELESS…yes they are HOMELESS!
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At the very least the RCMP owe these people a public apology. As does the Social Services Ministry. and the City of Enderby. The RCMP, City of Enderby and the Ministry of Social Services all had to know this was coming. If that ministry didn’t know this was coming, why would they stop checks for some of these people. This is just sooooo wrong on so many levels.
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