Winnipeg police have cracked down on an interprovincial organized crime group they say targeted Indigenous and northern Manitoba communities with illicit drugs.

According to police, hundreds of thousands of dollars in drugs and numerous guns were seized as part of Project Lowkey – a nine-month investigation spanning multiple provinces and law enforcement agencies.

Police say the investigation began in Manitoba in May 2024, targeting a sophisticated organized crime group based out of Toronto that trafficked drugs across the country, including in Winnipeg, Portage la Prairie, Thompson, Sandy Bay First Nation and other First Nation communities.

“Organized crime members from Ontario and Toronto are coming here because they know that they can come into these communities who are vulnerable in many ways and prey on their vulnerabilities, and their sole purpose is to make money,” said Insp. Josh Ewatski with the Winnipeg Police Service’s (WPS) organized crime division.

WPS said this group transported drugs using planes, trains, off-road vehicles, boats, mail, and trap vehicles – which are cars and trucks with professionally built compartments typically with hydraulics.

Officers say they used phony identification to travel and open bank accounts to fund the operation.

9 arrested, 5 still wanted in connection with drug bust

Multiple search warrants were carried out across the country on Jan. 31, including at four Winnipeg homes, two in Thompson, and one on Sandy Bay First Nation. They led to the seizure of about $891,000 in drugs, over $50,000 in seized firearms and magazines, and three vehicles.

Insp. Derek Beach with the Manitoba First Nations Police Service (MFNPS) said drugs were broken down in Sandy Bay First Nation and transported to other northern communities.

“When we shared that information, we were able to connect the dots and realize that this was a large organized crime unit using one of the First Nations communities as a hub.”

Among the drugs seized – 10.4 kilograms of cocaine, 16.73 ounces of crack cocaine, 8.73 kilograms of methamphetamine, thousands of hydromorphone pills, over a dozen MDA pills, 38.56 of cutting agent, and hundreds of Percocet pills.

They also seized about $280,000 in cash.

Nine people were arrested, police say, including two from Winnipeg and Sandy Bay First Nation. Six others were from Toronto or the GTA, and one was an American from North Carolina.

They were arrested and face a range of charges, Insp. Ewatski said, including drug trafficking, firearms, and conspiracy-related offences.

One person arrested in Saskatchewan was wanted on a first-degree murder charge and two counts of attempted murder related to Toronto cases. He was also listed on Canada’s Most Wanted list.

Two of the others arrested had previous murder convictions.

Investigators say they’re still looking for five others– Aaron Wolf-Plume, 22, from Alberta, Mohammed Abdirahman, 23, of Ontario, Rahim Khan-Mogakala, 22, of Ontario, Marquez Lerma-Jordan, 20, of Ontario, and Nathan Sylvester, 22, of Ontario.

None of the allegations have been tested in court.

Beach said it is unfortunately too common for drugs to come into First Nations communities, commonly from Winnipeg or other urban centres.

To counter the problem, MFNPS is in the process of recruiting more cops, gathering more intelligence about the drug trade, and sharing it with their Winnipeg counterparts.

“We are also always organizing our members, trying to make them more proactive in recognizing individuals who do not belong in the community, that are there to do drug activity or gang activity,” Insp. Beach said.

Manitoba Justice Minister Matt Wiebe said the substantial bust highlights how active organized crime remains in the province.

He said while the province is beefing up security at the border to cut down on international drug trafficking in response to U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariff threats, there could be fringe benefits to other drug investigations.

“We expect that some of those resources will ultimately be a net benefit for us to stop this inter-provincial drug trade.”

- With files from CTV’s Glenn Pismenny