‘Startling’ is how Windsor’s mayor is describing a massive cross-border drug bust in the city.
Drew Dilkens is praising law enforcement after a massive cross-border drug investigation led to the seizure of nearly 1.7 tonnes of illegal drugs worth an estimated $139-million.
The investigation, called “Project Bay”, began in January 2025 and involved Windsor Police, Ontario Provincial Police (OPP), Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA), the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, the Drug Enforcement Administration, Toronto Police, and Peel Regional Police.
The operation uncovered a broker-style smuggling network that used commercial trucking to move drugs across the border.
21 people are now facing dozens of charges, while officers seized large quantities of cocaine, methamphetamine, opium. They also seized firearms - including an anti-tank rifle - and thousands of dollars in Canadian and U.S. cash.
Dilkens says after seeing the seized drugs and weapons firsthand, the scale of the operation was very eye-opening.
“To get these off of the street, to get these guns off of the street, including an anti-tank rifle, it’s startling to see that, that that is out there in the public domain in the hands of organized crime. So congratulations to all the law enforcement personnel that were involved in removing this quantity of drugs and guns from the street. And we know they’re on top of it and there’s probably more to come.”
He says seeing the evidence in person drove home just how significant the investigation has been.
“It’s one thing to read the numbers, it’s another thing to see the quantity on display. This isn’t even everything. They couldn’t bring some things into the room. And so it is startling to see it all. These are the types of things you see on TV, to see it actually in your own city, and knowing that this didn’t just come all from the City of Windsor... this was brought together through all of the seizures they did as part of this project. It is quite startling to see that.”
Dilkens says the upcoming opening of the Gordie Howe International Bridge will provide another important tool in the fight against organized crime.
“The Gordie Howe Bridge will be the bridge with the most amount of technology embedded into it in order to clear trucks faster, but also be able to identify the types of things that we’re seeing behind me right now. And so, I can’t wait for the Gordie Howe Bridge to open. I know the technology is there.”
Police say Project Bay disrupted a major illegal drug supply chain operating in Ontario, but they believe the investigation is far from over.
19 people have been arrested and arrest warrants have been issued for two people from Windsor, a 22 and 28-year old, whose names have not been released.
Three others from Windsor and one suspect from LaSalle face a number of charges including conspiracy to import cocaine, trafficking cocaine, weapons offences, and possession for the purpose of trafficking.