MAC TAKES AIM AT DRUG DEALERS

As part of a joint effort with local school authorities to crack down
on illegal drugs -- from marijuana to ecstasy -- Montreal police
busted Macdonald High School students in Ste. Anne de Bellevue Monday.

While five students were caught in the sting operation, which
included videotaping alleged drug deals, according to Station 1 Cmdr.
Michel Lecompte, only one will be formally charged in the case --
drug possession with intent to traffic.

The student facing charges is a 17-year-old Grade 10 student, said
Mac principal Jim Aitken.

When police nabbed the Ile Perrot teen on Maple Street near the
school he was carrying six pills (which officers believe to be
ecstasy), six grams of magic mushrooms, six grams of marijuana, a
switchblade and a scale, according to Const. Chantal Morneau of
Station 1. Police found another 39 grams of marijuana in his locker,
which was searched by police after they obtained a warrant.

Aitken said the school's governing board wholeheartedly gave him the
green light last fall to proceed with the crackdown after realizing
the school -- like most other schools -- have incidents of students
using drugs.

"We can control what goes on inside the school but it's different
outside. Some students come back from lunch smelling of (marijuana),"
said the principal, who has headed Mac for six years.

The investigation is ongoing and Aitken hopes Monday's bust sends a
message to the student body and drug dealers. "We see it as a
positive move since we are trying to do something about the problem,"
he said, adding the crackdown effort is far from over.

Lecompte said one student caught on video was sent home without
charges after his mother was shown video evidence. "Judging from her
reaction, the punishment he gets from his parents will be enough," he said.

Lecompte said police are still looking for dealers to bust near the school.

All the students caught in the sting operation -- regardless of legal
charges -- will face "serious consequences" at school, Aitken said.
"I can't discuss the details yet, but it will be more than detention
or drug counselling."

- -- Additional reporting by Andy Blatchford