The Ontario Provincial Police has announced a historic fentanyl seizure following two lengthy investigations that also dismantled a drug ring accused of using the dark web and Canada Post to ship drugs across the country.
Investigators seized “a staggering” 43.5 kilograms of fentanyl equalling approximately 435,000 potentially lethal street-level doses during its investigations, says Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) Commissioner Thomas Carrique.
“To put that in perspective, a population of 435,000 would be the fifth-largest urban population centre in the province of Ontario,” Carrique said in a June 10 press conference at OPP General Headquarters in Orillia.
Police also seized more than $2.5 million worth of other drugs destined for shipment across nine provinces and territories, he said. The investigations, dubbed Project Bionic and Project Golden, have resulted in 19 people facing more than 200 charges under the Criminal Code and Controlled Drugs and Substances Act.
Project Bionic
Project Bionic was a five-month investigation aimed at dismantling a dark web marketplace used to ship a “high volume of drugs” to locations across the country, Carrique said.
It was launched last November and concluded in March with the arrest of four people and the confiscation of drugs, guns, cash, vehicles, and electronic devices.
“Project Bionic has exposed an alarming volume of dangerous drugs being sold through the dark web marketplaces with packages shipped across the country,” Carrique told reporters. “This investigation into the use of the dark web for drug trafficking is a first of its kind for the OPP.”
Two suspects were arrested at a Canada Post location in Ottawa on March 10 where officers confiscated 86 packages filled with different types of drugs that police say were on the verge of being distributed across the country, OPP Acting Detective Superintendent Andy Bradford told reporters.
Officers executed four search warrants later that day in nearby Gloucester and Nepean which led to the seizure of 27 kilograms and 64,000 tablets of 37 different illegal drugs, including fentanyl, cocaine, heroin, hydromorphone, methamphetamine, ketamine, and MDMA, more commonly known as ecstasy, Bradford said.
Investigators also confiscated a stolen 2018 Ferrari 488 Spider convertible valued at more than $400,000, 11 other stolen vehicles valued at $730,000, $95,000 in cash, and a handgun, an extended magazine, and ammunition.
Facing 54 charges as a result of the investigation is 26-year-old Amr Hammami of Ottawa while 24-year-old Hulya Colak, also of Ottawa faces 29 charges.
Also charged were Ottawa residents Khashayar Nazemi, 26, and Cole Dale Shouldice, 31. Both face one drug-related charge each.
Project Golden
Project Golden was an 11-month investigation into a drug trafficking network operating across various jurisdictions in southwestern Ontario, Bradford said. The investigation resulted in the seizure of approximately 38 kilograms of fentanyl, the largest seizure of the dangerous opioid by the OPP to date.
The probe began in July 2024 and was supported by the Hamilton Police Service and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, resulting in 140 charges being laid against 15 individuals, Bradford said.
Search warrants were executed at 16 residences and in eight vehicles on May 28 in Oxford County, Norfolk County, Hamilton, Mississauga, York Region, Burlington, and Toronto with assistance from local law enforcement, he said.
Officers seized 38 kilograms of fentanyl, 19.5 kilograms of methamphetamine, and 5.5 kilograms of suspected cocaine as well as three firearms and $121,600 in cash. The street value of the drugs was estimated at $5.4 million.
Facing 70 charges is Matthew Savory, 44, while Yunuen Monroy, 36, faces 12 charges. Both are Hamilton residents.
Mississauga resident John Williamson, 54, is facing 10 charges, Hamilton resident Darick Cyr, 55, is facing eight charges, and fellow Hamilton resident Isaiah Pereira Holness, 25, is facing seven charges. Ten additional adults and one youth also face a combined 33 charges.
Carrique said all of the drugs confiscated during the course of both investigations were being trafficked domestically.
“There is currently no evidence that they were destined for any country outside of Canada,” he said, noting that there was no indication of fentanyl trafficking across the U.S. border.
“That is not a trend that we have observed through Canadian law enforcement,” he said. “There’s no evidence that fentanyl is going in any significant quantities from Canada to the U.S.”
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