TIMMINS – Timmins police recently searched three local homes and seized a kilogram of cocaine, hundreds of methamphetamine tablets, dozens of opioid pills, and $10,000 in cash.

A man and two women, all in their 40's and from Timmins, now face charges.

"There is a strong market here. Sadly, there are a number of persons challenged by drug addiction issues, and with that, they're being taken advantage of by these drug traffickers," said Marc Depatie, Timmins Police Service.

Depatie says people who are suffering with addictions are entitled to privacy and says police cannot expect to get tips from them or from health care institutions.

"We depend more heavily on street level information… those informants who are keenly aware of who's actively involved in the drug trade. That information is vital to our investigations," explained Depatie.

Officials say the faster the information flows, the quicker police can react.

"The fresher the information, the better off it is and it's so easy to do now with Crime Stoppers being available to everybody," said Brenda Beaven, Cochrane District Crime Stoppers Board.

Beaven says she receives two to three drug related tips daily.

"I can actually dialogue a chat room with the tipster on occasion. It's happened a couple time where while I'm dialoguing with the tipster, I could be on the phone with the crime unit or the drug unit and they can start acting on it immediately," explained Beaven.

Police officials say stale information is not entirely useless as it can be used to illustrate a pattern of ongoing criminal activity.

They also say most of the narcotics are either coming from south of the border or southern Ontario, suggesting an element of organized crime.

Officials say they'll continue working to keep the city as drug free as possible.