FIREMAN FIGHTS POT CHARGE

A city firefighter charged with growing and selling marijuana pleaded
not guilty yesterday.

Dean Troyer and his wife Marie, both 41, are charged with cultivating
marijuana and possession for the purpose of trafficking.

The charges were laid after RCMP drug investigators raided a Stony
Plain home and discovered a hydroponic-grow operation.

Troyer, who has been on stress leave for 18 months, maintains he was
growing pot for his own use and considers it no different than his
home wine-brewing operation.

The firefighter and his wife allegedly had 15 plants and a recently
harvested crop in their possession worth about $20,000, police said.

Another city firefighter, Capt. John Klaver, 50, and his wife Wendy,
48, are also facing drug charges stemming from the same
investigation.

The pair allegedly had $60,000 worth of marijuana in their
home.

Both Troyer and Klaver have said they used marijuana for medical
reasons.

The Klavers are slated to appear in Stony Plain provincial court on
Oct. 23. The Troyers are due back in provincial court in Edmonton Feb.
22 for trial.

Checked-by: Patrick Henry