Edmonton Police Say Five People From Edmonton Are Charged With a Total of 133 Criminal Offences, Including Organized Crime, Trafficking, Money Laundering and Proceeds of Crime, After the Drug and Gang Enforcement Unit Investigated an Online Operation It Says Shipped About 8,700 Packages of Drugs Across Canada Under the Brand BlueBuddhaCo (October 19, 2026)

The Edmonton Police Service says five people from Edmonton have been charged with a total of 133 criminal offences, including organized crime, trafficking, money laundering and proceeds of crime, over an online drug operation the force says was run under the brand “BlueBuddhaCo.” In a news release published on October 19, 2026, the force says its Drug and Gang Enforcement Unit investigated from March 2024 to January 2025, and that the operation was shipping approximately 8,700 packages of drugs across Canada while laundering proceeds through banking systems and cryptocurrency platforms. The charges were laid in February 2026. Melvin Yong, 33, Dung Nguyen, 66, Gary Tan, 43, Mila Then, 35, and Kevin Leung-Wan, 33, are the five the release names. All are presumed innocent.

The Charges and the Accused

The release states that in February 2026 “the following individuals were charged with a total of 133 criminal offences,” a list the force words as “including organized crime, trafficking, money laundering and proceeds of crime.” The five named are Melvin Yong, 33, Dung Nguyen, 66, Gary Tan, 43, Mila Then, 35, and Kevin Leung-Wan, 33. The release does not break the 133 counts down by accused.

What the Force Says the Operation Was

Police say the Edmonton Drug and Gang Enforcement Unit (EDGE) investigated “an online organization operating under the brand ‘BlueBuddhaCo,’” which the release says was advertised as an online illicit drug delivery service. The release says it was “shipping approximately 8,700 packages of drugs across Canada” while laundering proceeds through banking systems and cryptocurrency platforms, and that “this criminal organization received approximately $1.98 million through e-transfer deposits.” Those are allegations of the Edmonton Police Service, and none of them has been tested in court.

Staff Sergeant Jennifer McCann of the Edmonton Police Service’s Drug and Gang Enforcement Unit is quoted in the release describing it as “a well-organized criminal enterprise that distributed controlled substances across Canada while attempting to conceal millions of dollars in criminal proceeds”.

The Searches and the Seizure

The force says search warrants were executed in January 2025 at multiple storage and distribution locations in the city, including central Edmonton and the Hollick-Kenyon and Schonsee neighbourhoods. Police say they located controlled substances, drug-processing and packaging equipment, digital scales and shipping supplies. The release says the organization was advertised as offering cocaine, MDMA, LSD, GHB and methamphetamine; it does not say which substances were seized. Police put the street value of the drugs seized at approximately $224,000; that figure is the force’s estimate.

Every accused is presumed innocent, and none of the 133 charges has been tested in court. The allegations are those of the Edmonton Police Service, as published in its October 19, 2026 news release.