SWIFT CURRENT – The Federal Crown has raised some eyebrows after dropping all charges against two Calgary residents who were arrested last year with 17.5 pounds of the deadly drug fentanyl during a highway traffic stop in Saskatchewan, The Bureau has reported.
Swati Narula, 27, and Kunwardeep Singh, 29, each faced charges of drug trafficking and possession for the purpose of trafficking, charges that were dropped with little explanation.
Saskatchewan RCMP called the seizure “significant”, stating they the officers “have prevented potentially millions of doses of this dangerous drug from entering our communities. I hope this is a message to others who chose to transport illicit goods in our province.”
Instead, the Federal Crown’s decision to drop all charges may embolden other potential traffickers, sending a clear message that many Canadians have criticized in online forums.
The Bureau reported that the Calgary-to-Saskatchewan fentanyl corridor bears resemblance to a separate interprovincial network dismantled by Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) last week, where a search warrant yielded 18 kilograms of suspected fentanyl, equivalent to 180,000 potentially lethal doses. Navjot Singh, 20, Attarvir Singh, 23, and Balwinder Singh, 21, were arrested, while a fourth, Manpreet Singh, 21, remains wanted on a Canada-wide warrant.
This disturbing pattern of federal prosecutors dropping charges in major narcotics cases comes on the heels of a similar case in British Columbia, where federal prosecutors stayed 12 counts of possession for the purpose of trafficking against a Richmond-based defendant, also similar to 2 cases in Ontario and Alberta, Project Brisa and Project Cobra, respectively.
The Bureau has reported that investigators believe Indo-Canadian organized crime networks connected with Canada’s long-haul trucking industry have become a major factor in narcotics trafficking in Canada.
-with information from The Bureau (thebureau.news).
