Drug police in the St. John’s area have seized close to a million dollars in illegal drugs and arrested a man from British Columbia.

The RCMP’s Federal Serious and Organized Crime Unit (FSOC) launched an investigation last November 17th into the importation of a large quantity of illicit drugs from western Canada to St. John’s.

On that same date, FSOC members stopped a vehicle in St. John’s in which they found three kilograms of nearly pure cocaine, 44 pounds of cannabis marijuana and an extendable baton.

Their investigation pointed to John Peppin of Brentwood, B.C. A Canada-wide warrant was issued for him and he was arrested on Monday with the help of police from Victoria, B.C.

Police say it is typical for cocaine at the multi-kilogram level to be diluted several times while being prepared for use at the street level. The total value of the drugs is somewhere in the range of $880,000 to just over one-million dollars.

Peppin will appear in court today.