Hard drugs seized with stolen artifact, RCMP say
Simon Metke charged with possession of a stolen $1.2M Persian artifact
The Edmonton man charged with possession of a stolen $1.2 million Persian artifact appears not to have been the aspiring medical-marijuana salesman he portrayed himself to be in media interviews, court documents obtained by CBC News show.
A 12-page inventory of seized items show the joint RCMP and Sûreté du Québec search of the posh 14th-floor apartment of Simon Metke and his girlfriend found what police believe to be marijuana, hash, heroin, opium, LSD, psilocybin, and numerous as yet-unidentified drugs contained in plastic bags.
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The RCMP also seized an electronic scale, and what police say are “score sheets,” commonly used by drug dealers to track who they sell drugs to and for how much.
Police also seized 20 separate bundles of cash.
None of the allegations contained in the court documents have been proven in court.
Metke has publicly claimed he was planning to get his licence to sell medical marijuana and the money found by police was donated and saved for a future business teaching children about ecology.
A special team of RCMP and Sûreté du Québec officers came to Edmonton from Montreal to search for a fifth century, Persian bas-relief sculpture which police say was stolen from the Montreal Museum of Fine Art in September 2011.
Metke has said he bought it for $1,400 from the neighbour of a friend, although he said he was skeptical about its alleged authenticity.
The search warrant related to the stolen Persian artifact is sealed until Jan. 31, 2015, so it is not known what led police to Metke’s Saskatchewan Drive apartment.
Strong odour of marijuana
But the documents show that as soon as police entered the apartment, they smelled a strong odour of marijuana and, in the kitchen, found drugs.
“I noticed two white coffee grinders on the kitchen counter in plain view,” RCMP Const. Brent Clarke wrote in his application to obtain the search warrant. “One contained ground-up cannabis marijuana.
“The first drawer I opened up in the kitchen contained a glass jar with what I believe to be contain approximately one ounce of cannabis marijuana,” Clarke wrote, adding that he found another container of what he believed to be “either cannabis resin or heroin,” and another container of either psilocybin or crack cocaine.”
In the cupboards, police say they found four large glass containers containing marijuana, each labelled with different names, such as “OG.
“The term ‘OG’ refers to ‘Original Gangster,’ a nickname for a strain of cannabis marijuana,” Clarke stated, adding that he also found what he believed to be “score sheets.
“I noticed code names and prices consistent with that of a cannabis marijuana trafficker.”
Clarke said Metke, when asked about the Persian artifact, directed police to the bedroom. He and his girlfriend were read their rights, arrested and taken to RCMP headquarters. Police then sought a second search warrant for the drugs.
Metke has been charged with possession of stolen property over $5,000, possession of the proceeds of crime and trafficking of a controlled substance. He is to appear in court March 19.