Cocaine ring ‘lieutenant’ gets 4 years in prison

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This article was published 13/02/2024 (681 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A man the Crown called “second in command” to the accused leader of a drug trafficking ring was sentenced to four years behind bars.

James Reid, 31, pleaded guilty last September to conspiracy to commit an indictable offence — cocaine trafficking — and was sentenced in Brandon court on Monday afternoon.

The Crown and defence agreed on the sentence for Reid, who has no prior criminal record.

Crown attorney Serena Ehrmantraut read the evidence for the charge in court.

Between September 2021 and November 2022, BPS conducted a 14-month investigation, dubbed Project Banish, into cocaine trafficking within the city. That probe identified another man as the leader of a drug organization that would import cocaine to Brandon and distribute it in the city.

Reid was identified by police as a member of that operation — a “mid-level” trafficker who, according to the Crown, served in the role of “lieutenant” and was trusted by the alleged leader of the drug ring.

Police learned of Reid’s role through intercepting a series of communications between Reid and the alleged leader during the course of the investigation.

Some of the communications between Reid and the alleged leader included Reid being told to access cocaine and cash from stash houses in the city. After one of these exchanges, police went into the stash house after Reid had left and discovered that he had taken a 12-ounce bag of cocaine from coolers in which the drugs were stored.

In another instance, Reid and the alleged leader were having a conversation about consequences for another dealer’s debt to the organization.

At another point, Reid was involved in picking up more cocaine supply and money from the alleged leader’s parents’ house, where police seized $500,000 cash in a bust at the end of the investigation.

Being trusted with access codes to stash houses, and being given responsibility to pick up cocaine and cash, meant that Reid was a trusted member of the organization, the prosecutor said.

“The above noted facts clearly demonstrate that he was very trusted and close associates with (the alleged leader), his lieutenant, if you will, second in command,” Ehrmantraut said.

When police arrested Reid, they found cash, a digital scale, ammunition and small amounts of cocaine in his home.

Though the sentence range for the type of offence Reid was charged with would usually be five to eight years behind bars, Ehrmantraut said the 31-year-old was getting credit for his guilty pleas and his good behaviour while on bail for a significant period of time.

He also struggled with addiction issues that contributed to his involvement with drug trafficking, the prosecutor added.

Reid’s defence lawyer, Jeffrey Gindin, told the court that his client’s story was that of a good man who did something bad.

He said his client accepts responsibility for his actions and after his arrest went to Addictions Foundation of Manitoba for counselling and volunteered at the Helping Hands charity in Brandon.

Reid has two young sons, Gindin said, adding that being away from them while in prison will be punishment in of itself.

Reid apologized to the court, his family and the community.

“I can sincerely say I’ll never be back here again,” Reid told the court.

Ultimately, Judge Shauna Hewitt-Michta agreed with the sentence recommended by the lawyers.

“I agree with the Crown that his level of moral culpability or moral blameworthiness is very high, evidenced by his entrenched status in the organization,” the judge said, adding that she hoped Reid’s lack of prior criminal record is an indication that he will learn from his mistake and not be back before the courts.

In addition to the four-year prison sentence, Reid was also sentenced to a weapons prohibition.

Federal inmates are normally eligible for full parole after serving one-third of their sentence.

Overall, Project Banish resulted in the seizure of more than nine kilograms of cocaine with a street value of more than $900,000.

» gmortfield@brandonsun.com

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