ONE LAST DRUG FLING ENDS LIFE OF LOCAL RAVE PIONEER

Judge Stayed Charges Conrad Would Have Faced In Court Today

Cole Harbour rave "pioneer" Derek Conrad was scheduled for trial today,
charged with possessing ecstasy for the purposes of trafficking. Instead,
Conrad's family is mourning his death.

Conrad, 28, died Monday in the QEII Health Sciences Centre after a wild
weekend drug binge. He overdosed Sunday morning at his home.

News of his death spread quickly through the metro rave community, with
several people turning to a local Internet chat site (www.ravehalifax.com)
to express their sorrow.

"I've lost a true friend, and Halifax has lost a pioneer in the rave scene.
May he now rest in peace," one posting read.

Conrad was well known in the all-night dance-party scene, having close ties
to two metro rave promotion companies, Liquid Groove and Power Source
International.

Power Source hosted the deadly 1999 Exhibition Park rave, Temptation, where
Port Hawkesbury native Jaimie Britten died from an ecstasy overdose.

Britten's family is suing Power Source for gross negligence in his death.

Conrad is named in the suit as having been a Power Source business partner.

And Liquid Groove - another business Conrad worked with - hosted an Eastern
Shore rave last summer where a 13-year-old girl was sent to hospital after
ingesting two ecstasy pills.

Conrad had a bachelor of commerce degree from Saint Mary's University and
was a certified St. John Ambulance instructor. He was focusing on a career
in nutritional consulting.

A close family friend said last night Conrad had distanced himself from the
rave scene recently and went out last weekend for one last bash.

Another posting on the local rave Web site expressed the grave reality of
Conrad's death.

"It is a shame what happened to Derrick (sic), and it is also a shame that
it had to hit close to home so that we can see what this s-t really does to
people. Hopefully, people will learn from this tragedy," wrote someone
using the nickname `livnlrg.'

Conrad and his younger brother, David, were charged in March 2000 with
drug-related offences after Cole Harbour RCMP raided their home. The trial
began in December and was scheduled to continue today. But on Wednesday,
the charges against the two siblings were stayed.

Derek Conrad's funeral service is today at 11 a.m., at Pope John XXIII
Church in Cole Harbour.