Rare night raids targeting guns and drugs in St-Henri

The raids came after Quebec, faced with a growing wave of gun violence, created a task force to crack down on firearms trafficking.

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A major police operation against drug and arms trafficking was launched Wednesday night in Montreal’s St-Henri district.

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The raids were carried out by a joint police task force made up of members of the Sûreté du Québec and the Montreal Police Department.

“It is rare for an operation of this type to take place at night,” said SQ spokeswoman Audrey-Anne Bilodeau. “The investigation began last March and is still active. We hope to have a report on the results of the raids in the next few hours. “

It was not immediately clear how many police officers were involved in the operation, what they seized while executing search warrants or whether arrests had been carried out, although Bilodeau said arrests were possible.

The raids on Wednesday night come after the provincial government, faced with a growing wave of gun violence in Montreal and elsewhere in Quebec, created a task force to crack down on illegal firearms trafficking.

Anyone with information on illegal trafficking, use or possession, or firearms should call 1-833-888-2763.