CORNWALL, Ont. -- Police say more than 7,500 marijuana plants have been seized after an investigation in the Cornwall, Ont., area involving multiple law enforcement agencies.
RCMP say the plants were seized after several grow ops were visited in Prescott-Russell, Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry counties.
Officers arrested one man who tried to flee as police approached, and RCMP say charges are pending.
The raids are a result of Operation SABOT, a Canada-wide marijuana eradication program held each year involving RMCP, the armed forces and many provincial and municipal policing partners.
Aerial patrols, along with tips from concerned citizens, are some of the ways police say they are able to locate outdoor marijuana grow operations.
RCMP say the objective of the operation is to seize the crops prior to harvesting and reduce the supply of marijuana on the streets.
The Cornwall operation involved RCMP as well as the Cornwall Regional Task Force, members of the Canadian Armed Forces, Ontario Provincial Police and Cornwall police.
"Marijuana can negatively impact our community in several ways, including decreased real estate values, fire hazards, environmental dangers, and the violence and criminal activity associated with the illicit drug market," said Insp. Tim Kimpan of the Cornwall Regional Task Force.
Police say as local officers were patrolling the Cornwall area, they were also able to tell Quebec police about another substantial grow operation along the Quebec-Ontario border.
More than 2,900 marijuana plants were seized in that area, along with 20 kilograms of hash and 41 kilograms of marijuana buds, police said.
