4 males reportedly on trial in Kelowna on Tuesday for substance abuse | information

In North Okanagan, a “massive” illicit drugs laboratory has been dismantled and six men have faced numerous charges, police said.

Four of them are expected to appear in a Kelowna court on Tuesday, but two of them remain at large.

On October 19, 2018, officials from multiple agencies raided property on Trinity Valley Road in Lumby.

According to a police press release distributed on Monday, the site contained a “massive secret laboratory,” one of the largest ever discovered in BC.

More than 50 kg of ephedrine and methamphetamine were confiscated, and hundreds of liters of solutions containing meth and fentanyl.

“Illegally manufactured fentanyl has been found in an increased number of overdose deaths in BC,” the RCMP press release said. “Secret laboratories like this fuel the health crisis.”

This particular laboratory also generated a large amount of synthetic waste, which was disposed of in a manner that police said posed a significant risk to local farmers and residents.

“The reduction of pollution was one of the key factors in the timing of the execution of the warrant,” said RCMP Supt. Bert Ferreira said in the press release.

It cost hundreds of thousands of dollars to clean up the website.

Michael McMorris, Robyn Bryson, Trent Fussi, Michael Harvey, Tyson Kopp and Michael Piggott face numerous drug abuse charges.

Four of the men are expected to appear in a Kelowna courtroom on Tuesday, but Bryson and Fussi remain at large with arrest warrants.

Anyone who knows where they are is asked to call their local police force or provide the information anonymously via Crimestoppers at 1.800.222.8477.