A month-long investigation by several police departments led to the arrest of six people, including two known gang members, and the seizure of drugs and a prohibited weapon.

On the morning of Dec. 31, Victoria police surveillance officers, West Shore Mounties and RCMP’s Lower Island emergency response team raided a home on Brookside Road in Colwood, near Veterans Memorial Parkway and Latoria Road.

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Officers seized heroin, methamphetamine and a prohibited weapon. Police also seized a Jeep Grand Cherokee as proceeds of crime under the Civil Forfeiture Act. Six men were arrested.

The investigation was sparked when Victoria police tried to locate a known gang member wanted on drug-trafficking charges. As plainclothes officers conducted surveillance on the man, they were led to an alleged illegal drug operation spanning several municipalities in Greater Victoria.

By following the man, investigators discovered a Colwood house they allege was being used to “store, process and sell illegal drugs,” said Victoria police spokesman Bowen Osoko.

“They utilized lots of locations for drops and pickups, but this was a location our investigation revealed they would all be at at the same time,” Osoko said.

Police are recommending charges of possession for the purpose of trafficking and possession of a prohibited weapon against the six men, all of whom are known to police. Their names were not released.

Osoko would not say which gang the two men are linked to.

Victoria Police Chief Frank Elsner said in a statement that the investigation came together because of strong co-operation between police departments.

“These folks try to take advantage of the disparate nature of the municipalities,” Osoko said. “So they’ll often try to set up operations in a variety of municipalities because they assume we won’t work together.”

Dozens of investigators were involved in the file, including West Shore RCMP and Victoria police’s Focused Enforcement Team, which focuses on the downtown core, crime-reduction unit and strike force team.

kderosa@timescolonist.com