Photo: file photo
A man who sold a small amount of fentanyl on Leon Avenue in Kelowna to an undercover police officer posing as a “drug user with his fortune” was sentenced to 26 months in prison earlier this month.
Jesse Lockhart, 39, was arrested in February 2018 after selling a point of down – 0.1 grams of heroin – to an undercover RCMP officer for two days in a row.
Between February 22 and 24, 2018, a foreign official, Const. Wong, dressed in a “costume” that included a leg cast and a walking stick, tried to buy drugs from people on Leon Avenue in Kelowna.
In a ruling released Wednesday, Judge Gary Weatherill, Const. Wong posed as a “lucky drug user” who “limped and appeared to be in pain while walking.”
“His intent was to mingle with others in the Red Zone and connect with drug dealers,” Justice Weatherill said.
Const. Wong reached out to Lockhart in the Leon Avenue area on Feb.23 and asked if he had “one point down”. Lockhart poured a small amount of what was later found to be fentanyl into a piece of foil and gave it to the officer, and the officer gave Lockhart $ 20, although there was no discussion of the price.
Const. Wong returned the next day and bought another 0.1 grams from Lockhart. While Lockhart told the officer the substance was “Fent,” it was later discovered to be a mixture of fentanyl and heroin. Lockhart warned the officer not to use everything at once and told him to be careful because “the high comes all at once”.
Lockhart, an indigenous man who was himself a heroin addict at the time, was arrested shortly afterwards and charged with trafficking in a controlled substance on two counts.
In January of that year, Lockhart moved to suspend the charges on the basis that the covert operation amounted to imprisonment, but Judge Weatherill denied the motion and sentenced him.
During last month’s rulings, the Crown requested a 24-30 month sentence, while Lockhart’s defense attorney advocated no jail term at all, claiming a three-year suspended sentence or conditional prison sentence would be more appropriate.
Judge Weatherill ruled that the alleged penalty for trafficking in fentanyl, except in “exceptional circumstances”, is incarceration. Lockhart’s attorney claimed his situation was exceptional as he had stayed clean and sober for the past 11 months with the assistance of his mother and had been out of the criminal justice system for five years prior to his 2018 arrest.
“Defense attorney contends that given that the drugs were only a ‘point’ at a time and the trafficking was low and straightforward, Mr. Lockhart’s conviction should not result in a provincial prison sentence of less than two years.” said Judge Weatherill. “He notes that Mr. Lockhart has been on bail for three years, which shows that he would not endanger the security of the community.”
Ultimately, Justice Weatherill decided that Lockhart’s circumstances were not “exceptional”.
“I consider the trade in fentanyl, regardless of the amount, a serious offense and should be punished with a severe penalty,” he said in his decision.
“You were caught trading fentanyl on two occasions in the drug-infested Leon Avenue neighborhood of Kelowna, which is often home to the homeless and the lower fringes of society. They took advantage of their situation.
“In February 2018, it was common knowledge that fentanyl is a very serious drug that has caused countless deaths in our community. Our society cannot stand by and allow this to go on with impunity. There must be consequences for those who continue to trade in or distribute fentanyl. The court has to send a message that death, as fentanyl has been called, human trafficking will not be tolerated and will be punished. The public expects and is entitled to nothing less. “
Judge Weatherill sentenced Lockhart to a 26-month prison term for selling 0.2 grams of heroin and fentanyl.
Last month, a Kelowna man found with 627 grams of fentanyl, 846 grams of cocaine and 395 grams of methamphetamine was sentenced to 24 months in prison, followed by three years’ probation.
