The Family: New details emerge about alleged leader of 500-person organized crime network in Calgary
The man alleged to lead a 500-person criminal organization involved in selling drugs and terrorizing a vulnerable community with violence, including a homicide, was once called a career criminal with a horrendous record by a Calgary judge.
New details about massive drug distribution network The Family and alleged leader Lawrence Orubor have been uncovered by CBC News through court documents, online records, and interviews with people who are either close to the investigation or work with clients of the Calgary Drop-In Centre, where much of the criminal activity took place.
Since Orubor's arrest, staff at the DI, as well as police, have recorded a "notable decrease of violent incidents" in the downtown area, police say.
Orubor, 52, who lives in Calgary's suburbs, has a criminal history dating back more than 30 years in both B.C. and Alberta, with at least 40 convictions on his record.
He now faces seven new charges connected to Operation Bloodline, the six-month police investigation into The Family.
Two weeks ago, he was released on bail.
Homicide connection
The charges faced by Orubor are rare: instructing drug trafficking and violent offences for a criminal organization.
"[Those charges] requires a great deal of investigative rigour to put that before the courts," said Deputy Chief Chad Tawfik at Tuesday's police commission meeting.
If the violence hadn't gotten so intense, perhaps The Family would still be operating under the radar, selling mostly single doses of drugs to addicted, homeless Calgarians.
https://www.google.ca/amp/s/www.cbc.ca/amp/1.5823960
