JUDGE SENTENCED FOR LAUNDERING DRUG CASH

MONTREAL, CANADA -- A Quebec Superior Court judge has been sentenced to 3
years in prison for laundering more than $1 million in drug money.

Robert Flahiff, 51, was convicted of laundering the money between 1989 and
1991 while he was a lawyer for a cocaine dealer.

The judge, free on bail pending an appeal, is still receiving his salary
despite his suspension from the bench two years ago. He became a judge in
1993.

Flahiff's defense lawyers had pleaded for leniency, but Quebec Court Judge
Serge Boisvert said Friday the offense deserved a stiff sentence.

According to testimony, Flahiff began taking satchels of cash to a branch of
the Bank of Montreal in 1989. A former bank official testified Flahiff was
allowed to enter the branch after business hours with a sports bag
containing thousands of dollars.

The bills were turned into bank drafts that ended up in Swiss banks.