Central Saanich pot grower pleads guilty

VICTORIA, B.C. - - A 60-year-old Victoria man pleaded guilty Wednesday to running a marijuana grow-operation and stealing electricity from B.C. Hydro.

Rudolf Van Den Bos was sentenced in Victoria provincial court to a nine-month jail term he can serve at home under strict conditions.

Van Den Bos was charged May 6, 1999, after police investigated a complaint from B.C. Hydro at his residence on Clark Road in Central Saanich. Officers found a hole had been drilled through the meter to stop it from measuring electricity used at the home.

Inside the home, police discovered a sophisticated grow-op encompassing several rooms. Elaborate watering, lighting and exhaust systems were in place, and marijuana plants were at various stages of maturity.

B.C. Hydro gauged the value of diverted electricity at $2,059.47. Police estimated the marijuana plants were worth $60,000 and the grow-op equipment $5,000.

Lou Webster, Van Den Bos's lawyer, said the delay in entering a guilty plea was caused by Van Den Bos leaving Canada for several years to help care for his ailing mother-in-law in Holland.

He told the court his client had set up the grow operation in hopes of getting himself out of debt caused in part by a boat purchase.

A marine mechanic, Van Den Bos bought a boat in hopes of refitting it for dinner cruises. He ran out of money and turned to private lenders, said Webster. He got deeper in debt and lost his savings, the lawyer said.

Webster said Van Den Bos has no criminal record, has been married for 37 years and has three grown sons.

Judge Jeanne Harvey ordered Van Den Bos to repay B.C. Hydro for the stolen electrical power and to pay a $1,000 fine.

He is prohibited from consuming drugs or alcohol during his jail term and must obey a curfew of 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. He also is prohibited from possessing firearms for 10 years.