Jim Finnel
Fallen Cannabis Warrior & Ex News Moderator
A former Telus marketing director was sentenced to eight months in prison in Seattle Friday for his part in a bungled, cross-border marijuana-smuggling ring.
Christopher Andrew Neary, 34, of Vancouver, was arrested Apr. 26 after being caught hiding in a snowy forest with two other men on the Washington State side of the U.S.-Canada border.
According to court documents, agents found backpacks stuffed with about 50 kilograms of marijuana, worth over $300,000, nearby. A third man in an SUV was also arrested.
Vancouver businessman Richard Bafaro, who U.S. officials say was the ringleader, was later arrested at a Bellingham hotel.
Border agents followed snowshoe tracks to find Neary and Daryl Fontana, a 37-year-old Duncan fitness-centre owner, hiding in the forest.
Neary and Fontana claimed they’d become lost while hiking in Canada and had accidentally crossed the border.
While they were talking, an SUV driven by Carl Thiessen arrived. Thiessen told agents he was a writer looking for a secluded place to write.
Agents found almost $5,000 in U.S. and Canadian currency in the SUV, as well as several bags of food.
A fifth man, Sinisa Gavric, was found after federal immigration agents heard branches breaking.
Four backpacks containing heat-sealed packages of marijuana were found hidden in the area.
According to court documents, Neary admitted to making the eight-hour hike, equipped with a machete.
Each hiker expected to get $10,000, said the court documents.
Neary’s jail term was for conspiracy to distribute marijuana.
Thiessen was sentenced to one year in jail and Gavric got an eight-month sentence when both appeared in court on Sept. 17.
Fontana is due to be sentenced Oct. 1 and Bafaro on Oct. 15 in Seattle.
NewsHawk: User: 420 MAGAZINE
Source: theprovince.com
Author: Damian Inwood
Copyright: 2010 Postmedia Network Inc.
Contact: Contact Us - The Province
Website: B.C. businessman sentenced in U.S. for pot-smuggling ring
Christopher Andrew Neary, 34, of Vancouver, was arrested Apr. 26 after being caught hiding in a snowy forest with two other men on the Washington State side of the U.S.-Canada border.
According to court documents, agents found backpacks stuffed with about 50 kilograms of marijuana, worth over $300,000, nearby. A third man in an SUV was also arrested.
Vancouver businessman Richard Bafaro, who U.S. officials say was the ringleader, was later arrested at a Bellingham hotel.
Border agents followed snowshoe tracks to find Neary and Daryl Fontana, a 37-year-old Duncan fitness-centre owner, hiding in the forest.
Neary and Fontana claimed they’d become lost while hiking in Canada and had accidentally crossed the border.
While they were talking, an SUV driven by Carl Thiessen arrived. Thiessen told agents he was a writer looking for a secluded place to write.
Agents found almost $5,000 in U.S. and Canadian currency in the SUV, as well as several bags of food.
A fifth man, Sinisa Gavric, was found after federal immigration agents heard branches breaking.
Four backpacks containing heat-sealed packages of marijuana were found hidden in the area.
According to court documents, Neary admitted to making the eight-hour hike, equipped with a machete.
Each hiker expected to get $10,000, said the court documents.
Neary’s jail term was for conspiracy to distribute marijuana.
Thiessen was sentenced to one year in jail and Gavric got an eight-month sentence when both appeared in court on Sept. 17.
Fontana is due to be sentenced Oct. 1 and Bafaro on Oct. 15 in Seattle.
NewsHawk: User: 420 MAGAZINE
Source: theprovince.com
Author: Damian Inwood
Copyright: 2010 Postmedia Network Inc.
Contact: Contact Us - The Province
Website: B.C. businessman sentenced in U.S. for pot-smuggling ring
