An Alberta drug task force dismantled an alleged fentanyl “superlab” on Oct. 2, and a Kelowna man was allegedly its main “cook.”

The lab had likely been producing large quantities of drugs for several years, the Alberta Law Enforcement Response Team said. (ALERT) during a press conference on November 8.

The day the search warrant was executed at the Valleyview, Alberta laboratory, a man, Stephen Mogg, 55, was arrested.

ALERT believes that Mogg was the “cook” of the industrial and highly sophisticated operation.

On November 8, ALERT announced to the public that Mogg had been charged with production of a controlled substance and possession of fentanyl for the purpose of trafficking. Alberta RCMP say Mogg is originally from Kelowna. According to court records, Mogg has no criminal record. He only faced two driving-related charges in Kelowna and Penticton in 2004.

The drug task force said in a statement that the Valleyview superlab was likely in continuous operation for at least two years, producing several kilograms of fentanyl with each cooking cycle. Each fentanyl production cycle took approximately one week.

In addition to seizing 7 kg of fentanyl, ALERT and the RCMP removed 4,200 L of fentanyl precursor chemicals and 1,500 L of chemical waste. The seized processed fentanyl has an estimated street value of $700,000 and 2 mg of fentanyl is considered a potentially lethal dose in the average person.

Industrial grade and highly specialized laboratory equipment, estimated to be worth tens of thousands of dollars, was also seized and has since been destroyed.

The “superlab” is likely connected to a larger international organized crime network that operates across Western Canada, ALERT said.

On October 25, police executed search warrants at two locations in British Columbia. A search was carried out on a site in Surrey and the other at a “massive drug superlab” in Falkland.

“After several months of investigating a transnational organized crime group involved in the production and distribution of massive quantities of drugs, federal police investigators have dismantled the largest and most sophisticated drug superlaboratory in history of Canada and seized a record number of illegal, synthetic firearms. drugs and chemical precursors,” said Assistant Commissioner David Teboul, commander of the RCMP’s federal policing program in the Pacific region, during a press conference on the Falkland drug laboratory at RCMP divisional headquarters , in Surrey.

ALERT’s investigation into the Alberta lab continues.

Members of the public who suspect drug or gang activity in their community can call local police or report anonymously to Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).

With files from Anna Burns, Tom Zillich