Canada's Largest Pot Bust

Ontario Provincial Police busted a marijuana operation in a cornfield in eastern Ontario. More than 40,000 pot plants were seized, setting a new record.

A cornfield in eastern Ontario was growing more than corn. Police on Sept. 18 found 40,000 marijuana plants growing in Laurentian Valley Township near Pembroke, Ont., about 150 kilometres west of Ottawa, during the execution of a search warrant. This seizure is one-third larger than the infamous 2003 operation at the former Molson brewery in Barrie, where police seized 30,000 plants. It took officers all weekend to seize the plants, which had a street value of approximately $40 million and were hidden between rows of corn. "That is huge, trying to remove all that by hand," Sgt. Kristine Rae said. Some of the marijuana discovered was being harvested, and a double garage behind the farmhouse had been set up to dry the plants. The plants were being watered via a system of plastic pipes running from a pond and an above-ground swimming pool. To date, no arrests have been made but the investigation is continuing. "There's persons of interest but it will take some time to follow through," Rae added.