23 charged in Project North Star cannabis probe in Ontario
York Regional Police charged 23 people and seek one more suspect after Project North Star, an inquiry into a London-supplied illicit cannabis network and online dispensary. Police say the group shipped cannabis by parcel across North America and Europe and seized over 1,550 pounds of cannabis plus hashish and derivatives worth about $4.8 million in London.
🇨🇦 York Region, Ontario · Ontario, Canada
·
Arrested
23
Charged
23
Cannabis
708.92 kg
Value (official estimate)
CAD 4,800,000
York Regional Police have charged 23 people and are searching for another
suspect after an investigation into an alleged cannabis trafficking operation
that stretched across Ontario and parts of North America and Europe.[1][2][3][4]The
man still wanted is Zongyu Zhu, 26, of Markham, who faces charges of conspiracy
to commit an indictable offence and possession for the purpose of distributing.[1][2][3][5][4]
Investigators say they seized more than 1,550 pounds of cannabis, 8.5 pounds of
hashish and 4.4 pounds of cannabis derivatives, along with infused edibles and
small quantities of ketamine and cocaine.[1][2][3][5][4]Police also seized two firearms
with high-capacity magazines and more than $250,000 in Canadian currency.[1][2][3]Two Ford pickup trucks were also seized, one of which police allege had been
re-vinned.[1][2][3]Police estimated the cannabis taken from the London grow
operation alone was worth approximately $4.8 million.[6][3][5][4]York police put the
value of all drugs seized in the project at more than $7.5 million.[6][3][5]
The investigation was dubbed Project North Star and was launched in February
2026.[1][2][5]It was led by the York Regional Police Complex Investigation Unit, in
partnership with the Ontario Provincial Police Provincial Joint Forces Cannabis
Enforcement Team, the Canada Border Services Agency and the London Police
Service.[6][4]Investigators allege the group sourced cannabis from several
locations across Ontario, including a large-scale illegal grow operation in
London, before distributing it through the underground market.[1][2][3][5]Police say
the group also operated an online illicit dispensary and shipped cannabis to
destinations across North America and parts of Europe using commercial parcel
delivery services.[1][2]Search warrants were executed between July and September
at properties in Markham, Scarborough, Vaughan, Burlington, Milton, London and
the rural community of Ailsa Craig.[1][2][3][5][4]The investigation shut down the illicit
cannabis dispensary and dismantled the illicit grow operation in London.[6][3]
Funding from Ontario’s Ministry of the Solicitor General supported the investigation through the Criminal Intelligence Service Ontario.[4]
Photos and video
Illegal grow operation in London raided in Project North Star. Photo: York Regional Police via CP24 Source: CP24One of the firearms seized by York Regional Police in Project North Star. Photo: York Regional Police via CP24 Source: CP24
Weights were reported as more than the stated pounds, so the kilogram total is a lower-bound conversion.
No weight was published for the infused edibles, so they are excluded from the cannabis weight.
Small quantities of ketamine and cocaine were reported without weights and are excluded from cannabis figures.
The reported total of more than $7.5 million covers all drugs seized, so only the $4.8 million cannabis-specific estimate for the London operation is recorded as value.
Search warrants were executed between July and September 2026 and the investigation ran February to September, so 4 November 2026 is used as the latest step when charges were announced.
It is unclear whether the wanted man is counted among the 23 charged or is an additional person facing charges.
The attached York police charge list with full names and counts was not itemized in this report.
The wanted-subject portrait was left out of media because it does not show the event itself.
Left out, as its quotation was not found in York Regional Police: York Regional Police say the investigation ran from February 2026 to September 2026.
Global News calls Ailsa Craig a rural village while the existing report calls it a rural community; the seven-place warrant list is otherwise identical.
Sûreté du Québec officers and Mashteuiatsh public security searched a home on rue Renaud in Mashteuiatsh and seized cocaine, methamphetamine tablets, cannabis including edibles, magic mushrooms and about $3,000 cash. One person was questioned and police said drug-trafficking charges were being considered.
A man in his thirties was arrested at the marina in Saint-Ferdinand, Quebec, on the evening of 29 October 2026 after young people reported a possibly armed person; he was carrying two compressed-air guns. A search of his vehicle found several narcotics, including cannabis and methamphetamine, and police said he could face drug and weapons possession charges.
Vancouver police raided Marc Emery's seed business and party headquarters on 29 July 2005 on a US request, and RCMP officers arrested Emery in Halifax the same day for extradition to Seattle on charges of conspiring to sell marijuana seeds, marijuana and launder money. Two associates were also arrested.
Police arrested cannabis activist Marc Emery in Winnipeg on 9 July 2003 as he tried to light a bong at the first stop of his cross-country Summer of Legalization tour. He was held overnight at the Winnipeg Remand Centre and missed his next stop in Dauphin.
