KHAT BUST LEADS TO COURT FINE

Chewing African Plant Can Have Sedative Effect

An Edmonton man was fined $3,000 Friday after he pleaded guilty to
importing 135 kilograms of khat, a mild narcotic used socially in
Somalia and other African countries.

Said Ali, a 51-year-old janitor and father to 11 children, stood with
his head bowed and his hands clasped behind his back as Provincial
Court Judge Harry Bridges accepted the guilty plea and set the fine.

Ali must also pay a $450 victim fine surcharge and submit a sample of
his DNA to the national databank. He will be on probation for one
year and must abstain from illegal drugs. He cannot own a weapon for 10 years.

Crown prosecutor Ian Fraser told the court that on Feb. 21, 2008,
Canada Border Services agents contacted city police to alert them to
a suspicious shipment that had arrived at the airport from England.

A man arrived to pick up the shipment, but was told to return the
following day. He did not return, but sent a taxi in his place.
Border Services released the shipment to the cab driver and another
man, and police followed them to the Eastglen Motor Inn near 118th
Avenue and 69th Street.

At the motel, Ali and two other men began to unload the shipment into
a hotel room. Police moved in and seized 640 bundles of khat with a
street value of between $9,600 and $12,800, Fraser said. It was the
first major khat bust in Edmonton.

Defence lawyer Michael Sparks said Ali moved here from Somalia in
1995 and now runs a janitorial business, cleaning hotels and
businesses in Grande Prairie and Peace River. He is the breadwinner
for a family of 11 children, who range in age from nine months to 19 years.

Sparks said the criminal record is a serious deterrent for Ali since
he can no longer accept jobs that require security clearance. He said
his client now understands that Canada takes khat seriously.

"He knows this is illegal now," Sparks said.

Ali was also charged with possession for the purposes of trafficking,
but the charge was withdrawn. All charges against a second man,
Abdullahi Barre, were withdrawn.

Khat, also spelled qat, is a mild narcotic that causes users to feel
euphoric and energetic. It is common and legal in many Middle Eastern
and African countries, where men have for generations chewed it in
groups as a social ritual.

The drug can also cause increased aggression and paranoia.

In 2007, 140 kilograms of khat were seized at the Edmonton airport.

There were 60 busts that year at the Calgary International Airport,
where 576 kilograms of khat were seized.