Police say they've seized a "significant" amount of guns, explosives and ammunition from a Langley farmhouse they believe Metro Vancouver gang members were using to equip themselves for drive-by shootings and other violent crimes.

"This is directly related to a Lower Mainland organized crime group conflict actively involved in violent crimes throughout the Greater Vancouver area," Vancouver police Supt. Mike Porteous told reporters Wednesday.

"Criminals went there to get prepared to commit violent crimes."

Police learned that the property, located in the 4000-block of 240 Street, was being used by gang members amid a broader investigation into organized crime in the region.

While executing a search warrant at the farmhouse on Nov. 13, officers seized nine handguns, three assault rifles and more than 600 rounds of ammunition as well as several bulletproof vests and two improvised explosive device authorities detonated at the scene as a precaution.

Investigators also discovered three stolen vehicles and more than 500 marijuana plants.

Porteous said several people who were at the property at the time were taken into custody, but later released "pending charges and further investigation."

Ballistic and forensic testing will help determine what gang might have been using the farmhouse or if the weapons found are linked to any previous crimes, according to the superintendent, who called the seizure a major victory for law enforcement.

"I would estimate that this stopped and disrupted numerous shootings, possible murders, attempted murders, etc." he said.

Dubbed "Project Treachery," the investigation that led to the seizure was a combined effort by Vancouver Police, B.C.'s Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit, Surrey Mounties, Langley RCMP and Abbotsford police.

CFSEU-BC Assistant Commissioner Kevin Hackett these kinds of collaborations are crucial to stopping large organized crime units.

"It's imperative that we work together for when those criminal groups travel and do their business outside areas where they may reside or frequent," he said.

Anyone with information about the farmhouse is asked to contact investigators at 604-717-0505 or Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS).

With files from CTV Vancouver's Shannon Paterson