Timmins part of international drug take-down

The RCMP will provide details Thursday of a two-province drug sweep which has resulted in more than 20 people being arrested.

A Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit involved in dismantling an international cocaine operation has deployed 300 officers to conduct 300 searches in Timmins and the Quebec communities of Montreal, Quebec City, Matane, Trois-Rivières, Ste-Anne-de-la-Pérade, and Sept-Îles.

A seizure last month of 750 kilograms of cocaine in the Caribbean Sea led to the raids.

Raymond Desfossés, a reputed member of Montreal's West End Gang, legendary for its bank heists and drug deals involving cocaine and hashish, was arrested during the operation.

The gang's operations are said to be facilitated by insiders at the Port of Montreal.

Further details of the massive bust will be announced at a news conference tomorrrow afternoon at RCMP headquarters in Westmount, Quebec.

BayToday.ca expects to publish an update sometime around 2 p.m. tomorrow.