The Lethbridge SCAN Unit has worked to shut down a known drug house on the north side, January 10, 2024. (Photo: Lethbridge News Now)

By David Opinko

Drug house shut down in north Lethbridge

Jan 10, 2024 | 1:34 PM

LETHBRIDGE, AB – Law enforcement personnel say they were successful in shutting down a known drug house in Lethbridge.

The Safer Communities and Neighbourhoods (SCAN) Unit of the Alberta Sheriffs has obtained a court order against the owner of 1607 3 Avenue North.

Effective at noon on Wednesday, January 10, 2024, the property must remain closed for 90 days. Any tenancy agreements or leases at the property have been terminated.

The property has been boarded up, fenced, and all of the locks will be changed.

Between September 1, 2021, and August 28, 2023, the Lethbridge Police Service said it had attended the home 36 times for various calls for service. Eight people in the neighbourhood had contacted SCAN, seeking to have the property closed.

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Deputy Chief of the Alberta Sheriffs Greg Medley said SCAN members will continue to monitor all activities in the area while their investigation is ongoing.

“When SCAN closes a problem property anywhere in the province, we make an immediate, positive difference in the lives of Albertans,” said Medley. “The southern Alberta SCAN team’s close partnership with the Lethbridge Police Service has been a key driver of our success in addressing properties like this one and I look forward to future progress.”

The Southern Alberta SCAN unit was first announced on November 15, 2023. Based in Lethbridge, it comprises six SCAN investigators from the Alberta Sheriffs.

Before the creation of the new team, SCAN officers based out of Calgary would be sent to Lethbridge on an as-needed basis.

Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Mike Ellis adds that the SCAN unit is instrumental in ensuring that communities are safe.

“I am pleased to see that, since its announcement in November, the southern Alberta SCAN team has taken swift action to confront and eliminate criminal activity in our neighbourhoods. Alberta’s government will do whatever it takes to keep all Albertans safe.”

SCAN officers have shut down numerous properties in the city over the last few years that have been used repeatedly to commit crimes.

READ MORE: SCAN unit added to southern Alberta to help combat crime

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