B.C. CHOPPER PILOT GETS NEARLY 4 YEARS

80 Kilograms Of Pot Seized In Idaho Bust

A B.C. helicopter pilot has been handed a 46-month sentence by the
U.S. District Court for smuggling nearly 80 kilograms of marijuana
into the United States earlier this year.

Jeremy Snow, 29, of Kelowna, was sentenced in Seattle on
Friday.

In addition, Snow will also be subject to three years of supervised
release.

Police found the drugs after Snow landed his helicopter in northern
Idaho on March 5, 2009.

Snow was arrested as part of Operation Blade Runner, a U.S.-Canada
sting operation targeting cross-border drug smuggling. He eventually
pleaded guilty.

Another helicopter pilot, Samuel Lindsay-Brown of Revelstoke was
arrested on drug charges in the same operation. The 24-year-old
committed suicide in a Washington state jail a few days following his
arrest.

Lindsay-Brown was facing charges related to the discovery of nearly
200 kilograms of marijuana in the Colville National Forest in
Washington state on Feb. 23.