CRIMINAL-ORGANIZATION CONVICTIONS SET PRECEDENT

For the first time in B.C., prosecutors and police have won a
criminal-gang conviction.

Two men in Kelowna have been found guilty of trafficking in large
quantities of cocaine for the benefit of, or in association with, a
criminal organization.

The significance of the verdict is that, under the law, a conviction
on a criminal-organization count must be sentenced consecutively with
other offences on the indictment, meaning a longer prison term.

Prior attempts by prosecutors to win convictions in
criminal-organization cases have failed, including a number of
prosecutions of the Hells Angels motorcycle gang.

In the Kelowna case, B.C. Supreme Court Justice Geoffrey Barrow found
that two men -- Thomas Donald Fraser and Jason Jonathon Herrick --
were involved in a cocaine-trafficking conspiracy linked to an unnamed
criminal organization.

"The RCMP is very pleased with the ruling," Supt. Brian Cantera, who
is in charge of drug enforcement for the RCMP in B.C., said Friday.

"It demonstrates that organized-crime convictions are possible in the
province of B.C. The ruling has a significant impact for those who
choose to operate in a criminal organization in this province.

"My recommendations to those who are involved in a criminal
organization is that they ought to consider the seriousness of the
offence."

Federal prosecutors argued that Fraser was the leader of the Kelowna
gang and arranged for the purchase and delivery of one or two
kilograms of cocaine at a time. The drugs were kept in one or two
self-storage lockers and were distributed primarily by Herrick to
others said to be members of the organization, court heard.

The narcotics were sold to people who lived throughout the Okanagan
Valley. Although Fraser did not touch either the cocaine or the money
generated by its sale, he controlled, directed and organized the gang,
court heard.

In addition to helping distribute the drugs, Herrick kept ledgers of
the transactions.

The judge determined that, when totalled, the ledgers record the
distribution of 15 kilograms of cocaine for $337,235 in just two months.

The investigation was launched following RCMP surveillance on a hair
salon, which had as its officer and director Fraser's mother.

In the parking lot of the salon, Herrick was seen placing a shopping
bag and a knapsack in a Honda, which was driven away by another man.

Police followed the Honda as it left the city and later stopped and
searched the vehicle in Merritt. Inside the shopping bag was $23,330
in cash. In the knapsack was another $25,000 wrapped in vacuum-sealed
plastic. A small amount of cocaine was found in the knapsack.

Police followed Herrick over the next several months, installing a
tracking device on his car.

Officers maintained surveillance on the storage lockers and
intercepted phone and text communications among the members of the
criminal organization. A number of other drug seizures were made.

The drug offences took place between May and August
2006.

A third accused, Margo Victoria Safadi, was found not guilty of the
charges. She was arrested by police in August 2006 after two kilograms
of cocaine in a nylon bag were found in the hatchback area of her car.

Safadi was driving the car, but there were others in the car and the
judge found there wasn't sufficient evidence she had knowledge and
control of the drugs.

Fraser and Herrick are to be sentenced in March.