Lengthy drug investigation in Saskatchewan leads to conviction of B.C. man

An investigation that started two years ago into drug trafficking in Saskatchewan has led to a nine-year prison sentence for a B.C. man.

The RCMP only provided details of the investigation Tuesday.

In a release, the Mounties said the investigation began in March of 2022. The RCMP Federal Serious and Organized Crime (FSOC) unit in Saskatchewan teamed with the Regina Police Service to delve into what the RCMP called “a sophisticated drug trafficking operation.”

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The Mounties said the investigation implicated a number of people across Western Canada. The operation involved the transportation of kilograms of cocaine and methamphetamine from B.C. to various parts of Saskatchewan and Alberta.

On March 20, a 27-year-old man from Burnaby was convicted on one count each of trafficking in a controlled substance, possession for the purpose of trafficking, possession of property obtained by crime, conspiracy to commit the indictable offence of trafficking a controlled substance, and conspiracy to commit the indictable offence of possessing property obtained by crime over $5,000.

According to the release, prosecutors negotiated a nine-year sentence that was accepted by the Court of King’s Bench.

“It goes without saying that it is incredibly important to arrest and charge those dealing drugs on the street level,” Staff Sgt. Richard Pickering, the acting officer in charge of the RCMP’s federal operations in Saskatchewan, said in the release. “However, when you can arrest those that lead large trafficking operations, it truly dismantles and disrupts dangerous, illicit drugs coming into Saskatchewan and other provinces for the long run.

“I am incredibly proud of the joint investigation and collaboration with our FSOC investigators, partner police agencies, and everyone else that worked tirelessly behind the scenes to ensure a conviction could be brought to fruition. Without them, we couldn’t take these dangerous individuals out of our communities.”

Federal Serious and Organized Crime targets criminal threats to Canadians, including national security, transnational serious and organized crime, and cybercrime. The RCMP said federal policing “focuses on criminal activities that cross international and/or provincial borders, carried out by organizations, networks or entities.”