Number of drug seizures on the rise, RNC says

Drugs seizures in areas of the province policed by the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary are on the rise.

There have been more than 900 in the past year, according to police. That's an average of five busts every two days.

The numbers for 2010 were up as well.

RNC Deputy Chief Bill Janes says marijuana, ecstasy and prescription drugs are what his officers are finding on the streets, although cocaine is still king.

"It's become the drug of choice in the community and it's reflective of what happened in other communities throughout North America ... is that you get a shift in the drug usage," Janes told CBC News.

That shift has prompted the RNC to change the way it does things. The force is becoming more of an intelligence-led organization.

Janes says there has been no big change in the weapons police are confiscating along with the drugs. But he says the experience elsewhere means the RNC must remain wary.

"Our intelligence and crime patterns in other jurisdictions dictate it's something that we need to focus on," Janes said.

Organized crime will also be a focal point for the force this year, the deputy chief says.

The news is not all bad, however. The RNC says the number of armed robberies is down sharply. There were 73 reported in 2011, down from 127 in 2010.

Janes says that's the fewest armed robberies since 2004.