Police shut down ‘drug house’ in city’s north end
North-end ‘drug house’ was the scene of homicide and other disturbances
Alberta sheriffs shuttered a “drug house” Wednesday in north Edmonton that police say had become a magnet for crime.
Neighbours clapped and shouted to police, “Good job cleaning up the streets,” as drills whirred, sealing up the windows and changing the locks on the flophouse in the Newton neighbourhood following an order issued Wednesday.
Edmonton police were called to the house 31 times in 2017, including for drug calls, disturbances, assaults and the killing of a man stabbed in the front yard.
A fence will remain around the property at 11838 54 St. during the 90-day court order, during which time the owners and any occupants will be required to vacate.
The Alberta Sheriffs’ Safer Communities and Neighbourhoods (SCAN) unit began investigating the property in January 2017 following a complaint about drug activity, a Wednesday news release said. Investigators found evidence of drug use, including a large number of people coming and going.
As a group of schoolchildren walked by Wednesday afternoon, Insp. Chip Sawchuk, with the SCAN unit, said the drug house poses a threat to the community.
“This owner lost control of the people who entered the property,” Sawchuk said.
According to a land title certificate, the house is owned by Quintin Stacey Verbonac.
Verbonac did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Last month, SCAN obtained a community safety order from the Court of Queen’s Bench banning the property owner from having any visitors or tenants for two years without approval from law enforcement.
In early July, a woman was injured in a shooting there, which prompted investigators to send a letter to the owner warning the house would be shut down if criminal activity continued.
A month later, Rodney Johnson, 49, was stabbed to death on the front lawn in Edmonton’s 32nd homicide of the year.
William John Robert Monkman, 33, was charged with second-degree murder in the case.
Speaking outside the house Wednesday, northeast division Staff Sgt. David Goodkey said the closure will free up a significant amount of resources and will have an effect on the surrounding community.
The property and others like it pose a threat to officer safety due to weapons and hazardous conditions, Goodkey said.
“This place was not kept up well at all,” he said. “It’s severely dilapidated.” Since its creation in 2008, SCAN has investigated more than 4,200 problem properties across Alberta and has issued 72 community safety orders.
Most troubles are resolved before safety orders are issued, said Sawchuk.
Rak Prasad, president of the Newton Community League, said community leagues across north Edmonton are working to deal with derelict properties, but getting authorities to take action on similar houses is a headache.