A RM of Springfield, Manitoba man allegedly concerned in high-level drug trafficking rings has been arrested after RCMP Federal, Critical and Organized Crime investigators uncovered his illicit drug operations and money laundering crimes.
James Robert McGirr, 39, is going through quite a few expenses after police linked him to a number of completely different drug trafficking operations. The RCMP’s Mission Divergent, concluded in March 2022, noticed 22 people arrested for drug trafficking offences, and that investigation opened up avenues into different drug networks, kickstarting Mission Decrypt, in which seven folks have been arrested.
In April 2021, Mission Decrypt started by trying on the trafficking of enormous quantities of illicit hashish. Because the investigation progressed, investigators discovered that McGirr had fraudulently acquired a Well being Canada licence for a micro-grow operation. As well as, he was utilizing authentic private Well being Canada medical licences underneath the names of his associates to feed his felony networks with the hashish he was rising.
When investigators have been trying on the proceeds of McGirr’s operation, they discovered that he was laundering his earnings by changing money to cryptocurrency. He did this by buying digital money, then transferring that money right into a cryptocurrency account. Additional, he helped others launder proceeds of crime money into cryptocurrency.
On June 8, 2023, 10 properties related to McGirr have been searched in the RM of Springfield, Sunnyside, Navin, and 7 in Winnipeg. One other property in Winnipeg was searched in August 2023. The searches resulted in the seizure of greater than $6 million in medicine, gear, and proceeds of crime. Greater than $3 million in property, greater than $2 million in illicit hashish, virtually $700,000 in drug and cryptocurrency gear, greater than $203,000 in way of life objects, greater than $15,000 in Canadian forex, and 7 firearms have been seized in the course of the searches.
McGirr was arrested at his residence in the RM of Springfield when the search was executed. Daniel Erenberg, 33, was arrested on the search of his residence in Winnipeg. 5 of McGirr’s associates have been arrested all through the month of June in Winnipeg, and one in September.
“The suspect in this investigation was acquiring Well being Canada medical hashish develop licences through fraudulent means and rising huge quantities of illicit hashish to promote through a felony community, after which he was changing that ill-gotten money into cryptocurrency to fund his lavish way of life and different felony enterprise,” stated Inspector Joe Telus, RCMP Intelligence Officer. “We see, through Mission Divergent and Mission Decrypt, how these networks feed off one another and are interconnected. We’re not focusing on authorized customers of hashish. These large-scale operations are producing illicit product and feeding felony networks, and the RCMP will proceed to work tirelessly to disrupt these networks.”
McGirr is going through 5 Hashish Act expenses and 5 Prison Code expenses, together with Fraud Over $5000, Identification Fraud, Possession of Property Obtained by Crime, Laundering Proceeds of Crime, and False Pretences.
Erenberg ran the medical develop operation and is going through expenses underneath the Hashish Act.
Jordan Fletcher, 33, of Ste. Anne, acted as a courier in the operation and is charged underneath the Hashish Act.
Jamar Smith, 42, of Winnipeg, was a grower for the medical licence develop operation and is charged underneath the Hashish Act.
Brett Little, 33, of Winnipeg, obtained the Well being Canada micro-grow licence and is charged underneath the Prison Code with Fraud Over $5000.
Raymond McGirr, 71 of Winnipeg, a relation to James McGirr, is going through firearms expenses underneath the Prison Code.
Michael Heckl Junior was a property proprietor the place the illicit medical develop was happening. His expenses are stayed as he’s now deceased.
All have been launched from custody pending court docket dates.
The RCMP acknowledges the help of its companions in this investigation: Monetary Transactions and Reviews Evaluation Centre of Canada (FINTRAC), Forensic Accounting Administration Group (FAMG), Civil Property Forfeiture, and Seized Property Administration Directorate.
