47 charges laid against 5 men after investigation that started as 'small' fuel fraud case, Delta police say

Delta police seized a variety of drugs during their investigation. They shared this photo of part of the seizure. (Delta Police Department)

Five men are facing a total of 47 charges after a police investigation in Delta that resulted in the seizure of more than $1 million worth of drugs last year, local police say.

The investigation began in February 2023 as a "small" operation looking into fraudulent fuel purchases, the Delta Police Department said in a news release issued Friday.

The scheme involved "fraudulent cardlock cards being produced and used," police said, adding that dozens of transactions had been made with a value greater than $25,000.

Investigators determined "an organized group" was involved in the fraud, according to the DPD.

The investigation quickly grew more substantial, with police executing a search warrant at a property on 104 Street north of Ladner Trunk Road in April 2023.

During their search, officers found loaded restricted and prohibited guns, "a fully operational drug lab" and an illegal marijuana grow operation, the DPD said.

Investigators seized $1 million worth of drugs, as well as vehicles associated with organized crime, police said. They did not specify how many vehicles were seized, nor their makes or models.

One man was arrested on an outstanding Canada-wide warrant during the search.

Police submitted a report to Crown counsel recommending 73 charges against nine people, according to the DPD.

Last week, the Public Prosecution Service of Canada approved 47 charges against five people.

Police said five men – 48-year-old Richard Stephen Voszler, 52-year-old Robert Johan Simonsen, 55-year-old Robert Joseph Stephen Lavalee, 42-year-old Robert Sean Rylands and 44-year-old Norman Sterner – have been charged.

Of the five, Voszler faces the widest variety of charges. The Delta resident has been charged with two counts of fraud under $5,000, three counts of possession of a loaded prohibited or restricted firearm, and three counts of using, shipping or storing a prohibited firearm.

He has also been charged with the following drug-related offences:

• Production of methamphetamine
• Possession of cocaine for the purpose of trafficking
• Possession of methamphetamine for the purpose of trafficking
• Possession of Heroin for the purpose of trafficking
• Possession of Fentanyl for the purpose of trafficking
• Possession of MDMA for the purpose of trafficking
• Possession of Ketamine for the purpose of trafficking
• Possession of Amphetamine for the purpose of trafficking
• Possession of Dimethyltryptamine for the purpose of trafficking
• Possession of GHB for the purpose of trafficking

The other charged individuals are all accused of multiple counts of the same offence: fraud under $5,000.

Simonsen faces two counts of the charge, Lavallee and Sterner face eight counts each, and Rylands faces 11.

Simonsen and Lavallee are Surrey residents, while Rylands is from Abbotsford and Sterner is from Delta, according to police.

The DPD said two of the five men have been arrested, though they didn't specify which two. The remaining accused are wanted on unendorsed warrants, police said.

"When we commence an investigation, we follow the evidence, and we don’t necessarily know where a specific file is going to go," said DPD Chief Neil Dubord, in the release.

"Our (crime reduction unit) showed commitment and follow-through on a complex investigation, with a complex disclosure package. I am very proud of the work of our CRU members. I would also like to acknowledge our federal Crown partners who approved the charges in a complex and difficult file."