Fentanyl, cocaine, guns, and cash seized during million dollar bust in Calgary

From Alberta Law Enforcement Response Team

Focus on fentanyl paying off with $1 million Calgary bust

Calgary… A recent drug bust in Calgary took upwards of 20,000 doses of fentanyl off the street, part of a series of recent investigations by ALERT that were aimed at disrupting the opioid market.

ALERT Calgary seized nearly $1 million worth of drugs and six firearms after two homes were searched on April 16, 2021. ALERT seized 4.5 kilograms of fentanyl, along with methamphetamine, cocaine, and buffing agents. Two people were arrested and 39 charges were laid.

“Fentanyl has been a scourge in our communities and organized crime is responsible. ALERT will remain ruthless in our pursuit of drug dealers, and investigations like these, demonstrate our success in getting harmful drugs off the street,” said Supt. Dwayne Lakusta, ALERT CEO.

The million-dollar seizure is the highlight, to date, of a recent string of investigative successes by ALERT Calgary. The unit has worked in tandem with policing partners, such as Calgary Police Service and RCMP to specifically target street-level opioid and meth sales.

“Integration is the key element of ALERT’s success. By working with our partners and sharing intelligence on emerging issues, ALERT’s specialized units are able spring into action and deliver meaningful results,” said Lakusta.

The following provides a brief synopsis and tally of recent investigative success, including ALERT’s most recent bust. The investigations are not believed to be linked:

April 16, 2021 two people were arrested and two homes were searched in Calgary. Nicholas Rybenko, 39, and Wessen Vandenhoek, 35, face multiple drug and firearms charges after ALERT seized:

6 firearms;
4,505 grams of fentanyl;
353 grams of methamphetamine;
13 grams of cocaine;
17,146 grams of a suspected buffing agent;
$30,000 cash.

April 6, 2021 two homes in Calgary’s Beltline were searched and a 24-year-old man was arrested. Ady Zhang Chang was charged with possession of drugs for the purpose of trafficking and possession of proceeds of crime, after ALERT seized:

134 grams of fentanyl;
181 grams of cocaine; and
$1,250 cash.

March 29, 2021 a traffic stop was initiated on a suspect believed to be involved in street-level drug sales. ALERT located drugs inside the vehicle and its occupants were arrested. Amrudin Karimyar, 23, and Mohit Sandhu, 19, were charged, and ALERT seized:

43 grams of fentanyl;
9 grams of methamphetamine;
14 grams of cocaine; and
$6,955 cash.

February 2, 2021 ALERT searched two homes in Calgary and arrested a 31-year-old man. Jaspreet Cheema faces a number of drugs and firearms charges after ALERT seized:

A loaded handgun;
220 grams of fentanyl;
12 grams of cocaine;
1,912 grams of a cocaine buffing agent;
$12,970 cash.

Since 2018, ALERT teams from across the province have seized 18 kilograms of fentanyl powder and just over 250,000 fentanyl pills. Over 100 investigations have been conducted involving opioids.

Members of the public who suspect drug or gang activity in their community can call local police, or contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477). Crime Stoppers is always anonymous.

ALERT was established and is funded by the Alberta Government and is a compilation of the province’s most sophisticated law enforcement resources committed to tackling serious and organized crime.

Related Topics:#AlbertaLawEnforcementResponseTeam #FentanylBust #MillionDollarBust #NicholasRybenko #WessenVandenhoek ALERT feature

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Alberta

Alberta is investing up to $50 million into new technologies to help reduce oil sands mine water

Published on June 17, 2025

Government of Alberta

Technology transforming tailings ponds

Alberta’s oil sands produce some of the most responsible energy in the world and have drastically reduced the amount of fresh water used per barrel. Yet, for decades, operators have been forced to store most of the water they use on site, leading to billions of litres now contained largely in tailings ponds.

Alberta is investing $50 million from the industry-funded TIER system to help develop new and improved technologies that make cleaning up oil sands mine water safer and more effective. Led by Emissions Reduction Alberta, the new Tailings Technology Challenge will help speed up work to safely reclaim the water in oil sands tailing ponds and eventually return the land for use by future generations.

“Alberta’s government is taking action by funding technologies that make treating oil sands water faster, effective and affordable. We look forward to seeing the innovative solutions that come out of this funding challenge, and once again demonstrate Alberta’s global reputation for sustainable energy development and environmental stewardship.”

Rebecca Schulz, Minister of Environment and Protected Areas

“Tailings and mine water management remain among the most significant challenges facing Alberta’s energy sector. Through this challenge, we’re demonstrating our commitment to funding solutions that make water treatment and tailings remediation more affordable, scalable and effective.”

Justin Riemer, CEO, Emissions Reduction Alberta

As in other mines, the oil sands processing creates leftover water called tailings that need to be properly managed. Recently, Alberta’s Oil Sands Mine Water Steering Committee brought together industry, academics and Indigenous leaders to identify the best path forward to safely address mine water and reclaim land.

This new funding competition will support both new and improved technologies to help oil sands companies minimize freshwater use, promote responsible ways to manage mine water and reclaim mine sites. Using technology for better on-site treatment will help improve safety, reduce future clean up costs and environmental risks, and speed up the process of safely addressing mine water and restoring sites so they are ready for future use.

“Innovation has always played an instrumental role in the oil sands and continues to be an area of focus. Oil sands companies are collaborating and investing to advance environmental technologies, including many focused on mine water and tailings management. We’re excited to see this initiative, as announced today, seeking to explore technology development in an area that’s important to all Albertans.”

Kendall Dilling, president, Pathways Alliance

Quick facts

All mines produce tailings. In the oil sands, tailings describe a mixture of water, sand, clay and residual bitumen that are the byproduct of the oil extraction process.
From 2013 to 2023, oil sands mine operations reduced the amount of fresh water used per barrel by 28 per cent. Recycled water use increased by 51 per cent over that same period.
The Tailings Technology Challenge is open to oil sands operators and technology providers until Sept. 24.
The Tailings Technology Challenge will invest in scale-up, pilot, demonstration and first-of-kind commercial technologies and solutions to reduce and manage fluid tailings and the treatment of oil sands mine water.
Eligible technologies include both engineered and natural solutions that treat tailings to improve water quality and mine process water.
Successful applicants can receive up to $15 million per project, with a minimum funding request of $1 million.
Oil sands operators are responsible for site management and reclamation, while ongoing research continues to inform and refine best practices to support effective policy and regulatory outcomes.

Related information

Alberta

Alberta announces citizens will have to pay for their COVID shots

Published on June 16, 2025

Todayville

From LifeSite News

By Anthony Murdoch

The government said that it has decided to stop ‘waste’ by not making the shots free starting this fall.

Beginning this fall, COVID shots in the province will have to be pre-ordered at the full price, about $110, to receive them. (This will roll out in four ‘phases’. In the first phases COVID shots will still be free for those with pre-existing medical conditions, people on social programs, and seniors.)

The UCP government in a press release late last week noted due to new “federal COVID-19 vaccine procurement” rules, which place provinces and territories as being responsible for purchasing the jabs for residents, it has decided to stop “waste” by not making the jab free anymore.

“Now that Alberta’s government is responsible for procuring vaccines, it’s important to better determine how many vaccines are needed to support efforts to minimize waste and control costs,” the government stated.

“This new approach will ensure Alberta’s government is able to better determine its overall COVID-19 vaccine needs in the coming years, preventing significant waste.”

The New Democratic Party (NDP) took issue with the move to stop giving out the COVID shots for free, claiming it was “cruel” and would place a “financial burden” on people wanting the shots.

NDP health critic Sarah Hoffman claimed the move by the UCP is health “privatization” and the government should promote the abortion-tainted shots instead.

The UCP said that in 2023-2024, about 54 percent of the COVID shots were wasted, with Health Minister Adriana LaGrange saying, “In previous years, we’ve seen significant vaccine wastage.”

“By shifting to a targeted approach and introducing pre-ordering, we aim to better align supply with demand – ensuring we remain fiscally responsible while continuing to protect those at highest risk,” she said.

The jabs will only be available through public health clinics, with pharmacies no longer giving them out.

The UCP also noted that is change in policy comes as a result of the Federal Drug Administration in the United States recommending the jabs be stopped for young children and pregnant women.

The opposite happened in Canada, with the nation’s National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI) continuing to say that pregnant women should still regularly get COVID shots as part of their regular vaccine schedule.

The change in COVID jab policy is no surprise given Smith’s opposition to mandatory shots.

As reported by LifeSiteNews, early this year, Smith’s UCP government said it would consider halting COVID vaccines for healthy children.

Smith’s reasoning was in response to the Alberta COVID-19 Pandemic Data Review Task Force’s “COVID Pandemic Response” 269-page final report. The report was commissioned by Smith last year, giving the task force a sweeping mandate to investigate her predecessor’s COVID-era mandates and policies.

The task force’s final report recommended halting “the use of COVID-19 vaccines without full disclosure of their potential risks” as well as outright ending their use “for healthy children and teenagers as other jurisdictions have done,” mentioning countries like “Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland, and the U.K.”

The mRNA shots have also been linked to a multitude of negative and often severe side effects in children and all have connections to cell lines derived from aborted babies.

Many Canadian doctors who spoke out against COVID mandates and the experimental mRNA injections were censured by their medical boards.

LifeSiteNews has published an extensive amount of research on the dangers of the experimental COVID mRNA jabs that include heart damage and blood clots.