Eight Edmonton suspects are facing charges after roughly $2 million in drugs, cash, and proceeds of crime were seized after a two-year investigation which police say spanned across Canada.
Project Elk was a lengthy investigation into an Edmonton-based drug trafficking network that was involved in drug importation. The eight suspects were arrested and charged in October 2021 with offences ranging from drug and firearms related, to conspiracy to commit an indictable offence, to commission of an offence for a criminal organization.
The suspects are scheduled to make their initial court appearances on November 25, 2021.
ALERT Edmonton’s organized crime team spearheaded the investigation in November 2019, and Project Elk also involved the assistance of the Edmonton Police Service, Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre (FINTRAC), and specialized RCMP units from Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Ontario.
In August 2020, ALERT intercepted a six-kilogram cocaine shipment that originated in Toronto. The seizure precipitated a series of search warrant executions in which six homes in the Edmonton were searched and one home in Strathcona County.
Project Elk resulted in the seizure of:
- Five firearms;
- 10 kilograms of cocaine;
- 17 kilograms of a cocaine buffing agent;
- 4.7 kilograms of meth;
- 2.9 kilograms of cannabis; and
- $135,000 cash.
In addition, ALERT seized roughly $200,000 in offence related property, including three vehicles, jewelry, diamond rings, and Rolex watches.
A total of 35 criminal charges have been laid against:
- Tyshawn Walters, 29-year-old man from Edmonton;
- Kashane Walters, 34-year-old man from Edmonton;
- Kariyawasam Kariyawasam, 39-year-old man from Edmonton;
- Tyree Malcolm, 28-year-old man from Edmonton;
- Levi Collinge, a 39-year-old man from Edmonton;
- Boris Derpich, 43-year-old man from Edmonton;
- Stacey Sharpe, 35-year-old woman from Edmonton; and
- Trevor Bellows, 31-year-old man from Edmonton.
Members of the public who suspect drug or gang activity in their community can call local police, or contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477). Crime Stoppers is always anonymous.
ALERT was established and is funded by the Alberta Government and is a compilation of the province’s most sophisticated law enforcement resources committed to tackling serious and organized crime.
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