A massive RCMP drug sting last fall led to periods of house arrest for two young men following guilty pleas entered on Monday.
Scott Robert Brough pleaded guilty to a single count of trafficking in a controlled substance, which encompassed three separate incidents when he sold cocaine to an undercover police officer. Brough sold two grams of powder cocaine on Sept. 10, Oct. 8 and Nov. 18.
When he was arrested a few days after the last sale he was found to have a small amount of cash on him and he also pleaded guilty to possession of the proceeds of crime, and a single count of breaching his probation.
The arrest was part of Project Kompression, a large regional drug operation.
Another young man, Spencer Smolic also pleaded guilty to a single count of trafficking, though the court heard he was involved in only one of the transactions when he passed the money and drugs between Brough and the undercover officer.
Brough was sentenced to a two-year conditional sentence consisting of a complete house arrest for the first 12 months and a nightly curfew for the last 12 months.
He will be able to leave his house only for work or a handful of other exceptions and will have to abstain from alcohol.
Judge Norman Mackie said even though this was a significant amount of drugs he was willing to take the same chance federal Crown prosecutor Kevin Short was taking on Brough.
He noted the amount of cocaine could have killed three people.
Mackie emphasized to Brough the conditional nature of the sentence made it extremely likely that if he stepped out of line he would serve the remainder of his sentence in jail, an experience he would not appreciate.
“You may find yourself sharing a cell with a 250-pound lovesick cellmate.”
When Brough was arrested, in addition to seizing the cash and drugs, police seized his 2004 Ford Focus, which he won’t get back.
Smolic was sentenced to a similar, though shorter, conditional sentence for his role in the one transaction. Short noted his lack of criminal record, his youth and his relatively minor involvement with the sale.
His full house arrest will last just the first six months with six months under a curfew, but he will be bound for 12 months after that under a probation order.
The order Mackie put in place will only require him to report to the probation officer as directed and stay out of any further trouble.
A man who sold seven grams of marijuana to an undercover cop was handed a four-month conditional sentence and eight months of probation.
William Charles Cole pleaded guilty to a single count of trafficking for a sale of marijuana he made to an undercover officer on Sept. 25.
Cole was part of a major drug operation conducted across the Capital region, leading to more than 65 arrests in total. He was not arrested at the time of the sale and after an unsuccessful search police issued a warrant.
Cole’s lawyer told the court he turned himself in after he saw his picture in the Gazette.
Cole’s conditional sentence will include two months house arrest and two months on a nightly curfew. He will be prohibited from having a cellphone and will also have to perform 40 hours of community service work.
Two men who received an unwelcome knock from police in August 2009 were handed house arrest terms this week.
Chad Douglas Fanjoy and David James Klassen both pleaded guilty to a single count of possession for the purpose of trafficking.
After obtaining a search warrant, officers raided the home and found 15 ounces of marijuana as well as 2.5 grams of cocaine.
Fanjoy also pleaded guilty to breaching his bail conditions; Klassen pleaded guilty to a single count of simple possession of cocaine.
For the drug charges, both men were given six months conditional sentence, which will see them under complete house arrest for the first three months and under curfew for the final three.
Fanjoy was sentenced to one day in jail for his breach and Klassen was given a $400 fine for the cocaine possession.
