No bail for Toronto man arrested with nearly $1M in vehicle

A Brandon judge has denied bail to one of the two men arrested late last month outside the city after RCMP found nearly $1 million in their vehicle when it was pulled over for speeding.

Provincial Court Judge Shauna Hewitt-Michta rejected the bail application for Alireza Haghgoo, 22, of Toronto, saying she wasn’t satisfied he wouldn’t reoffend or pose a safety risk to the public if released.

“These allegations are obviously serious and point to interprovincial trafficking of an illicit commodity, suspected drugs, with a concerning level of trust and entrenchment presumable from the quantity of cash involved,” she said.

Federal Crown attorney Ken Hawkins and Ontario defence lawyer Ryan Premnarine provided their submissions regarding Haghgoo’s initial bail hearing on Aug. 4.

His application for release included sureties totalling $60,000 with a cash deposit of $15,000, and orders to reside with his parents, only use one cellphone and not contact the co-accused.

Ahmad Ahmadi, 44, from Stouffville, Ont. was released on bail last week with an order not to possess any illegal drugs, weapons or contact Haghgoo, and pay a cash deposit of $1,000 and $11,000 surety.

Both men were charged with possession of property obtained by crime for the purpose of drug trafficking and are presumed innocent.

Hewitt-Michta summarized the allegations in court before making her decision in front of Haghgoo, who appeared by video while in custody at the Brandon Correctional Centre.

On July 31 around 9 p.m., Ahmadi and Haghgoo were pulled over by RCMP on the Trans-Canada Highway near Brandon in the Rural Municipality of Cornwallis, she said.

A Mountie observed a fast-moving white SUV travelling east that was found to be driving 129 kilometres an hour in a 100 km/h zone.

The officer pulled the vehicle over and asked Ahmadi, the driver, and Haghgoo where they were travelling from. Haghgoo told police they were “just exploring” Calgary, Hewitt-Michta said.

Police noted the vehicle had an Ontario licence plate and a rental agreement showed Ahmadi had rented the SUV that same day with a return date of Aug. 2 in Toronto.

Haghgoo allegedly told the officer he had flown to Calgary, followed by an updated explanation for his trip, which involved doing “random work” selling jewelry and watches, Hewitt-Michta said.

He declined to provide RCMP with any identification.

“The officer observed the accused to be nervous and increasingly so over the course of the interaction. Specifically, he noted an artery in the accused’s neck pumping hard, that he was breathing heavy and that his legs and feet were fidgeting,” she said.

Ahmadi was screened for alcohol, which came back negative, and was given a speeding ticket.

Then the RCMP informed the occupants that they were being detained for a drug investigation.

“The grounds for detention were the accused travelled between major urban centres in a rental vehicle, including a one-way flight and then returned by car — a pattern often associated with drug trafficking,” Hewitt-Michta said.

Through the back hatch window, police saw a reusable shopping bag with “brick-sized objects” that looked similar to bricks of cocaine in shape and size, she said.

There was also a hockey bag on the back seat that had no luggage tags on it.

“The detaining officer had noted that the driver and passenger seemed not to know each other well, which can be consistent with the trafficking or courier situation,” Hewitt-Michta said.

Police arrested the two men and searched the vehicle, finding more than $900,000 in cash in vacuumed sealed packages between the two bags. RCMP said in a news release on Friday that Mounties seized approximately $970,000.

At the bottom of each bag was an Apple AirTag — small, coin-sized tracking devices.

Each of the accused had two cellphones, she said.

“One of the cellphones seized from the accused had sophisticated remote wiping software installed, such that it could not be placed in airplane mode, preventing officers from blocking outside interference,” Hewitt-Michta said.

Officers saw the phone deleting its data once they returned to the Minnedosa detachment, where they interviewed both men.

During his statement to police, Ahmadi said he runs a limousine service in Toronto and was hired by Haghgoo to fly to Calgary, rent a car, pick him up at a residential address and drive back to Toronto, she said.

“He told police that when he picked the accused up, he had bags which the accused placed in the back of the vehicle without help from the co-accused,” Hewitt-Michta said.

Haghgoo told police he’s a self-employed jeweller who buys and sells luxury watches and sometimes acts as a “middle man” in high-value sales for other jewellers, she said.

He allegedly refused to provide details on his business to support his claims.

Haghgoo’s defence lawyer said he came to Canada as a refugee from Iran in 2019.

Ahmadi and Haghgoo’s next court appearances are scheduled in Brandon for Sept. 10.

» tadamski@brandonsun.com