Kamloops RCMP are offering a video tour around a local "crack shack," the first to have been forfeited in B.C. by its owner through Offence-Related Property legislation in British Columbia.
The residence on Nicolani Drive, valued at over $250,000 dollars, was owned by 52-year-old Nicodemo Joseph Bruzzese, who pleaded a week ago to multiple counts of drug trafficking.
The house was seized after a four-week undercover operation targeting illegal drug sales which started in September 2008. Along with Bruzzese, the RCMP also arrested Domenico Antonio Di Giacomo, 46. The Kamloops Drugs Section conducted the investigation alongside the RCMP Federal Integrated Proceeds of Crime Section.
The video is a walk-through tour of the property, showing a deteriorated and messy interior. To view the video, click here.
Insp. Wade Lymburner, Officer in Charge of the Federal Integrated Proceeds of Crime Section, said in a statement that Bruzzese had lost a home that had been in his family for some time.
"In this case, a home that had been passed down by Mr. Bruzzese's parents to him as an inheritance has been forfeited," he said. "Federal Integrated Proceeds of Crime will continue to aggressively investigate all avenues where any property used to commit a criminal offence can be seized, restrained and forfeited to Crown."
When the crack house was in operation there had been many noise complaints, prostitution and crimes in the area, as well as a major health and safety concerns for the neighbours around, the release said.
The property will now be cleaned, re-fitted and re-sold.
