Saanich police bust ring allegedly selling vape products at Greater Victoria schools
More than $100,000 worth of vaping products have been seized by Saanich police detectives who say the items were being marketed and sold at schools throughout B.C.'s capital region.
The seizure was made Friday at a business in the 700-block of Vanalman Avenue, marking the culmination of a months-long investigation by the Saanich Police Department.
No arrests have been made in the case and the investigation is ongoing.
Detectives began investigating reports that vaping products were being sold to students at Saanich middle and high schools in November.
In the months since, police witnessed people selling vaping products to minors at schools across Greater Victoria, both during and after school hours, according to the department.
The same people were also seen selling to young people at malls and parks, accepting cash or cards through portable point-of-sale terminals.
Investigators allege the salespeople used food delivery bags, duffle bags and plastic totes to conceal the controlled products.
The sellers contacted minors primarily through the social media platform Snapchat to advertise their products before sending direct messages to confirm prices and schedule a delivery time and location, according to police.
"It is clear that the items are branded and marketed in such a way to entice youth into buying them, and these individuals specifically targeted schools to sell their products," Saanich police spokesperson Const. Markus Anastasiades said in a statement Wednesday.
Officers with the Greater Victoria Emergency Response Team assisted in executing the search warrant on the Vanalman Avenue business on Friday.
Police say investigators seized over $100,000 worth of vaping products, including vape kits, vape pens, e-cigarettes, e-liquids, and fluid tanks.
They also seized liquids that contained up to 98 per cent THC, and some tobacco products, according to police.
The distribution of tobacco and vaping products to minors is prohibited under the federal Tobacco and Vaping Products Act.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
New Indigenous loan guarantee program a 'really big deal,' Freeland says at Toronto conference
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.