Massive drug-smuggling ring linked to two at Abbotsford car dealership

By Maria Cootauco, The Province
Published: Saturday, June 07, 2008


FERNDALE, Wash. -- Two British Columbia men were arrested Thursday in Ferndale, Washington following a three-year investigation of their distribution of B.C. bud and cocaine.

Devron Quast of Abbotsford and Robert Shannon of Maple Ridge, both 38, made an appearance Friday at the U.S. District Court in Seattle.

Quast, Shannon and seven others were indicted for conspiracy to distribute cocaine and marijuana.

On Thursday, Quast and Shannon went to Ferndale to meet with an undercover officer for a drug deal, according to the indictment. The same day, law enforcement seized $50,000 and hundreds of pounds of pot that the ring was trying to get across the border into the U.S.

According to the Don Quast Hyundai company website, Quast and another man named in the indictment, Phillip Stone, 45, are employees of the Abbotsford dealership. Quast, the owner's son, is the general manager and Stone is the sales manager.

Stone is charged in the indictment for his role in obtaining containers and trailers to transport the narcotics into the U.S.

The investigation, which involved undercover officers, resulted in the seizure of more than 590 kilograms of cocaine, more than 3,000 kilos of B.C. bud and about $3.5 million.

Over the course of the investigation, over 38 people -- 12 of whom are Canadian -- have been charged with drug trafficking and related offenses.

In the indictment, Quast oversaw day-to-day operations of drug transportation and providing insurance to Canadian marijuana suppliers that drugs would be successfully smuggled into the U.S. Quast agreed to pay suppliers $425 per pound of marijuana if a load was lost for any reason.

Shannon was in charge of distributing the drugs on behalf of the Hells Angels motorcycle gang and others.

The narcotics were smuggled across the border in hollowed-out logs on trucks, fake walls of cargo containers and vehicles, within loads of commercial lumber and beauty bark, inside PVC pipes and in the interior of a propane tanker. Some loads were carried on foot across the U.S. and Canada international border.

Others charged are Chilliwack resident Richard Jansen, 33, the owner of Scorpion Transport Services for helping "the organization by driving his trucks across the border to facilitate future smuggling," according to the indictment.

The indictment also names Tomohisa Kawabata, 34, of Vancouver, for receiving a shipment of marijuana from the organization while in New York and providing $3.3 million to the load driver.

If convicted, Shannon and Quast could face up to life in prison.

Reference Source - The Vancouver Province

Why post news like this on this forum? It would only be of interest to some if it involves RK or some other Indo businessman from Guyana.

quote:

Originally posted by Billy Ram Balgobin:

Why post news like this on this forum?

It would only be of interest to some if it involves RK or some other Indo businessman from Guyana.

Since when permission is needed from you to determine what to post on the forum???

But so is relevance

quote:

Originally posted by Na Cl:

But so is relevance

Your point and relevance are ... ??

Why do you think this article is REVELANT to the "Guyanese at large community"?

quote:

Originally posted by Na Cl:

Why do you think this article is REVELANT to the "Guyanese at large community"?

quote:

Political Discussions
A discussion of political issues concerning Guyana and the World.

Do you determine relevance/interest to Guyanese and others who frequent this forum?

Iman could be lookin for a Hyundai cyar...it would be bemificial if I had the address of said "joint".

Many thanks


ps: See dat Na Ci...relevant indeed!