17 charged in large Ottawa police organized crime, drug investigation

Police in Ottawa released details on an 18-month organized crime and narcotics investigation, dubbed Project Champion.

Officials said that the conclusion of the investigation resulted in 17 people facing charges. In total 149 charges were laid and 14 people were arrested; three remain at large.

“Project Champion was designed to arrest members involved in violent criminal networks and disrupt their Ottawa-based illegal narcotics distribution,” Chief Eric Stubbs said.

Thirteen of the accused also face serious charges related to being members of or providing support to a criminal organization.

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Stubbs noted that many of the accused came to officials’ attention during other investigations focused on violent crimes such as homicides and shootings.

Using resources from the homicide, guns and gangs, street crime and intelligence units, police were able to target the criminal organization responsible for cocaine trafficking and street-level gun violence.

After over a year of investigating, police carried out a series of warrants on Nov. 7 and 12 resulting in the seizure of 6.5 kilograms of cocaine and a small amount of crack cocaine. Police also note in a release that five crime guns were taken, which they believe were intended to be used in violent crimes that could have posed a “significant” threat to public safety.

“Project Champion is a key example of what can be achieved when law enforcement agencies work together in a coordinated effort,” Stubbs said.

Those facing charges include:

• Mussa Aden, 29-year-old of Ottawa, 6 charges
• Yaheya Benamiar, 26-year-old of Ottawa, 4 charges
• Aaron Decastro-Sing, 39-year-old of Ottawa, 2 charges
• Faisal Fareed, 28-year-old of Ottawa, 19 charges
• Ahmed Hassan, 30-year-old of Ottawa, 4 charges
• Bayle Khandid, 31-year-old of Ottawa, 7 charges
• Bile Khandid, 33-year-old of Ottawa, 6 charges
• Yasin Mohamed, 36-year-old of Ottawa, 4 charges
• Tyson Morris, 35-year-old of Ottawa, 16 charges
• Ibtisam Rijal Hersi, 27-year-old of Ottawa, 4 charges
• Moussa Saleh Ali, 35-year-old of Ottawa, 5 charges
• Abdullahi Shahreen, 28-year-old of Ottawa, 33 charges
• Kalif Shahreen, 29-year-old of Ottawa, 17 charges
• Yussuf Tarabi, 35-year-old of Ottawa, 7 charges
• Abdulaziz Warsame, 30-year-old of Ottawa, 7 charges
• Leban Xadi, 29-year-old of Ottawa, 6 charges
• Darioush Yavari, 31-year-old of Ottawa, 2 charges

This is a breaking news story. More to come.