A resident reported about 20 police officers and a tactical vehicle outside the building before sunrise.
From The London Free Press by Dale Carruthers August 12 2026
ONEIDA – An early-morning raid on a north London apartment building is linked to an investigation into an alleged drug-making operation on this Indigenous community southwest of the city, police say.
London police tactical officers assisted the OPP in carrying out a search at 260 Villagewalk Blvd., a high-rise building west of Richmond Street and Sunningdale Road, around 5 a.m. Wednesday.
The London search and another conducted on the Oneida of the Thames First Nation are part of an investigation into an illegal drug operation, Middlesex OPP Const. Jeff Hare said.
“The investigation is ongoing; therefore, we cannot provide further details at this time,” Hare said in an email.
A resident of the Villagewalk Boulevard building, who asked not to be identified, described seeing a large police presence outside the building before sunrise.
“They had the fire alarms going off and there were about 20 cops outside, including what looked like a SWAT vehicle,” he said in a text message.
The building’s property manager sent an email two hours later to update residents on the police activity.
“A unit was raided by police, which caused some loud noises throughout the building,” said the email obtained by The Free Press. “The issue has been taken care of, and the individual has been arrested. Thank you for understanding.”
Oneida police assisted the OPP with a search of a property in the area of Fairgrounds Road, Oneida officials said in a statement posted to social media.
“Police initiated an investigation involving a criminal organization operating within Oneida Nation Settlement . . . and the dismantling of an illegal drug manufacturing operation,” the statement said.
“The individuals involved are alleged to have been engaging in the production and distribution of illegal drugs within our community and surrounding areas.”
Police had cleared the scene by mid-afternoon.
Oneida Chief Deborah Hill declined to comment on the investigation.
“We’re meeting as a council on this soon,” she said.
Oneida, located 30 kilometres southwest of London, is home to more than a dozen cannabis dispensaries that aren’t licensed by the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario, the province’s cannabis regulator.
Cannabis shops on Indigenous territories across Ontario have largely escaped police scrutiny since they started appearing before cannabis became legal in Canada in 2018.
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