Police allege Scarborough man was using Petrolia AirBnB to make fentanyl

The Independent

Sarnia Police seized over $200,000 in drugs after stopping a suspect in Petrolia.

Thursday, the Sarnia Police Major Case Action Team with the Emergency Response Team and the Canine unit stopped vehicle in Petrolia. During the arrest, the drive was combative, so police used a taser to subdue and arrest him.

Police searched the vehicle and found 10.5 ounces of cocaine, 13 ounces of methamphetamine, and eight ounces of fentanyl. Police say half of it was uncut fentanyl which they say could easily make close to a kilogram of fentanyl when mixed with a precursor which was also seized.

Police say the estimated street value of the drugs was $222,069. Police also seized $7,900 in cash during the traffic stop.

Police also found an AirBnB in downtown Petrolia where they allege the driver was staying. Police got a search warrant and went through the short term rental and seized another $12,140 in cash, food colouring, ziploc bags for packaging and 7.34 grams of MDMA as well as a digital scale.

Police say the items seized during the arrest and at the Petrolia AirBnB show evidence of high level trafficking in Sarnia and suggests he was producing or mixing his own fentanyl based on the items seized and found in Petrolia.

Police arrested Owen Clayton Folkes, 23, of Scarborough. He was held for bail charged with four counts of possession of a controlled substance for the purpose of trafficking and possession of property obtained by crime over $5,000.

“This arrest again demonstrates how far reaching these criminal enterprises can be,” said Chief Derek Davis in a news release. “We also see that City of Sarnia investigations often have connections to our Lambton County neighbours.”