HUSBAND CONVICTED, WIFE ACQUITTED IN JANE-FINCH MARIJUANA GROW-OP CASE

There was a mixed verdict in the trial of a Toronto couple accused of
running a marijuana grow-op in their home in the Jane and Finch
section of the city.

Tam Ngoc Tran was convicted of marijuana production-related offences
while his wife, Lien Thi Pham, was acquitted by Justice Kathleen
Caldwell in a ruling announced late on Tuesday.

The federal Public Prosecution Service is still going ahead with its
attempts to seize the home, which the couple bought in 1997 for about
$200,000, under the provisions of the Controlled Drugs and Substances
Act.

The legislation permits the government to seize "offence-related
property" if there is a conviction for certain offences, including
marijuana production.

The bulk value of the marijuana seized had an estimated value of
$50,000 to $75,000.

The defendants, who are both in their late 50s, had no prior criminal
record, and there was no allegation of a link to organized crime. The
grow-op, which had not been harvested, was allegedly in operation for
a number of months.