Abbotsford Police began a two-month investigation after concerns were expressed by “South Asian community leaders” that doda was being sold in the city.
ABBOTSFORD – Two Indo-Canadian men were busted by Abbotsford police last week in connection with the selling of what was believed to be doda, but was later tested and found to be opium.
Doda is an opiate that is derived from the same poppy plant that produces heroin and opium, but is considered to have less of a narcotic effect, said Const. Ian MacDonald. It is primarily used within the South Asian community.
MacDonald said Abbotsford Police began a two-month investigation after concerns were expressed by “South Asian community leaders” that doda was being sold in the city.
“We have talked to people who are addiction counsellors and they are saying they are seeing an increase, particularly among youth, of addictions to doda.”
Balbir Randhawa, a multi-cultural therapist with Abbotsford Addiction Center, said doda is known to be used within the Indo-Canadian community in Abbotsford, but she has seen few clients seeking help for this issue.
She believes this is because doda does not produce the same violent or criminal behaviours that can come from other addictions, such as alcohol or heroin, and, in that way, is more comparable to marijuana use.
Kelly Chahal, public relations director for the Abbotsford-based Fraser Valley Indo Canadian Business Association, said research needs to be funded to determine if the use and sale of doda is an emerging issue or simply one that has received more attention recently because of its unfamiliarity.
Starting in July, undercover officers arranged three separate meetings to purchase doda, and the last one resulted in the arrest of two men, ages 48 and 51 years, at about 5:30 p.m. Thursday.
They were arrested separately in the vicinity of Cedar Park Place – where one of them works at a business – at the corner of South Fraser Way and Clearbrook Road.
Both men face charges of drug trafficking, while one faces an additional charge of possession for the purpose of trafficking. Both are due in court in late October and cannot be named until they are formally charged.
MacDonald said police were surprised when they tested the substance found on one of the men and discovered it was not doda, but opium.
He said it is not yet known if the men who were arrested knew that they were selling the more-potent drug or whether they believed it was doda, a derivative of opium.
The investigation will include tracking the source of the drug and whether the men produced it themselves, MacDonald added.
Doda is a fine powder which is made by grinding the husks and the seeds of the poppy plant and is most commonly diluted in tea or hot water to produce a quick high.
Opium is drained from the seed pods of mature poppies and is sold as a powder or dark-brown solid that is smoked, eaten or injected.
Last August, two men were arrested in a seven-acre poppy field in Chilliwack where 60,000 plants were being grown. The field was believed to be the largest crop of its kind ever located by police in Canada.
Tehal Singh Bath, 32, of Abbotsford and Mandeep Singh Dhaliwal, 30, of Mission were both charged with production of a controlled substance and possession for the purpose of trafficking.
Their trial is scheduled to begin May 28 in Chilliwack.
