Fentanyl lab bust occurs in Lumby, BC

On October 19, 2018, several RCMP units executed a search warrant on a property on Trinity Valley Road in Lumby, BC. Federal Serious and Organized Crime (FSOC) members from Kelowna and Osoyoos, with assistance from Clandestine Laboratory Enforcement and Response (CLEAR), North Okanagan RCMP and Southeast District Emergency Response Team (ERT), converged on the residence which contained a massive clandestine laboratory.

As a result, five individuals were arrested and large quantities of drugs, precursor chemicals and waste materials were located. In total, approximately 48 kilograms of ephedrine HCl, 50 kilograms of solutions containing ephedrine HCl, 4.5 kilograms of methamphetamine HCl, 147 gallons (556 litres) of solutions containing methamphetamine, 10 kilograms of 4-anilino-N-phenethylpiperidine (ANPP), 2.95 kilograms of nandrolone phenylpropionate (NPP), 660 grams of fentanyl and 124.7 litres of solutions containing both fentanyl and ANPP.

The chemical ANPP is a direct precursor to fentanyl, and NPP is an androgen and anabolic steroid. Five British Columbians and an Alberta man were charged in the massive clandestine laboratory bust.

Illegally produced fentanyl has been linked to an increased number of overdose deaths in BC. Clandestine laboratories like this are fuelling this health crisis. Clandestine laboratories not only produce synthetic drugs under no safety standards, but they also produce a significant amount of waste materials. That waste can contaminate the environment and cause immeasurable health risks to the public.

This clandestine laboratory remains one of the largest in BC. The specialized hazardous waste removal and disposal required in this case was in the hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Michael McMorris, Robyn Bryson, Trent FUSSI, Michael Harvey, Tyson Kopp and Michael Piggott all face several counts of Unlawfully Possessing Chemicals and Equipment, Possession of a Controlled Substance for the Purpose of Trafficking (methamphetamine and fentanyl), and Production of a Controlled Substance (methamphetamine and fentanyl). Bryson and Fussi both face an additional charge of Flight from Police. McMorris, Harvey, Kopp and Piggott are scheduled to appear in Kelowna Law Courts on October 27, 2020.

Bryson and Fussi remain at large with endorsed warrants for their arrest. If you know their whereabouts, please call your local police or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477)