'Crack cocaine has become an increasing problem in the City of Iqaluit, affecting 'individua

Two thousand hits of crack cocaine are off the streets of Iqaluit, say RCMP, following a major drug bust that's the fruit of a four-month investigation.

Rafic El Cherkkaowi, 22, of Edmonton faces drug trafficking and gun charges. Police arrested him Sept. 28, four days after he arrived in Iqaluit. He remains in custody and was to appear in court for a bail hearing this week.

The same day of Cherkkaowi's arrest, Mounties raided two Iqaluit apartments and seized more than 1.6 kilograms of crack cocaine, $92,000 in cash, an unregistered gun and drug paraphernalia.

One apartment is #211 in Iqaluit House, across from the post office, and the other is #708 in the eight-storey high rise at the Astro complex.

Police say the drugs have a street value of $400,000.

"Crack cocaine has become an increasing problem in the City of Iqaluit, affecting individuals and families," the RCMP said in a news release.

That's a change in tone from this past August, when in separate interviews both V Division chief superintendent Marty Cheliak and Cst. Pete Lambros, who heads the RCMP's drug section, downplayed the availability of crack cocaine in the capital.

Lambros said Mounties had made some scattered powdered cocaine busts, but hadn't seen any crack, because the drug's supply was inconsistent.

"It depends on who's got what and what's available, what's the flavour of the day," he said.

The Cherkkaowi investigation would have been underway at the time.

Deputy Mayor Allen Hayward and Coun. Glenn Williams have both complained the RCMP wasn't doing enough to crack down on drug dealers and weren't communicating enough with city council.

In an interview Monday, Hayward welcomed news of the seizure, though he's still not happy council has yet to receive a report on crime figures from the RCMP.

Iqaluit's new detachment commander, Staff Sgt. Charlie Gauthier, introduced himself to council last week, but Hayward complained "it's been 180 days since the last report to mayor and council."

The bust comes on the heels of an appearance before council by elder Annie Nattaq, who was lamenting the city's drug problem. She told councillors children as young as 10 were being used to fetch drugs, though she didn't say for whom or what kind of drugs they were ferrying.

"I think they are now experimenting with drugs," she said.

"This is not right. We have to do something now."

Nattaq urged Iqalummiut who know who the drug dealers are to tell the RCMP.

"It's good to see that, after six to eight months of constant pressure from city council and having a little old lady come and cry at city council, they [the RCMP] finally decided to take some action," Hayward said.