Assets of restaurant and bar frozen as part of 2014 Ottawa drug investigation

OTTAWA—Police say they’ve frozen the assets of two more properties in the Ottawa area that are related to the dismantling of an alleged drug trafficking network in 2014.

Police announced in January 2014 that nine men were facing about 75 charges after officers seized 24.5 kilograms of cocaine, 10 vehicles, and firearms over the course of two-year investigation dubbed Project Anarchy.

RCMP said in a release Thursday that the assets of a restaurant in Ottawa and a bar in nearby Gatineau, Que., have been frozen under a related financial crime investigation called Project Attar.

Police say the two properties are worth about $1.4 million and an Ottawa property that was frozen in 2014 is worth approximately $1.1 million.

RCMP spokeswoman Sgt. Penny Hermann says an attempt to seize the properties as proceeds of crime will be made pending the outcome of the trials of those charged under Project Anarchy.

Ronald Lauzon, the acting officer in charge of the RCMP Ottawa detachment, says Project Attar was designed to further disrupt and dismantle the alleged drug trafficking network financially.

“Organized crime groups involved in drug trafficking are creative in their strategies to evade law enforcement and in the concealing of their illicit funds,” Lauzon said.