Police in Hamilton, Ontario say they seized more than 296 kilograms of cannabis on March 1 that was destined for export to the US.

Hamilton Police were called to an industrial area in Stoney Creek on Monday, March 1, in regard to a suspicious shipment being loaded onto a transport truck.

Police discovered processed cannabis hidden in amongst the shipment. The vice and drug unit was contacted, attended and began an investigation.

A search warrant was executed on both the warehouse and transport truck, yielding 653 bags of cannabis, weighing approximately one pound per bag.

Eric Hewitt Grewar, a 56-year-old Hamilton man, has been arrested without incident and held in custody. He is charged with unlawful possession of cannabis for purpose of exporting, possession of cannabis for purpose of distributing it, and failing to comply with probation.

The estimated value of the drugs seized is believed to be more than $4.5 Million in Canadian currency.

“Based on the level of sophistication used to conceal the cannabis and the method used to transport it across the border police believe members of organized crime to be involved. The amount of drugs seized and the method used to avoid detection at the US border is consistent with high-level drug importing and exporting,” said Detective Sergeant Jason Cattle, Vice and Drug Unit in a press release.

In 2020, US authorities seized more than 20,000 pounds of cannabis at the Canadian border, a record amount for US border agents at the US Northern border with Canada.