DRUG COURIER'S LIFE NOT SO EXOTIC, COURT TOLD

The lawyer for a convicted drug courier facing a double-digit prison
sentence tried to play down the man's alleged exotic lifestyle yesterday by
pointing out all the luxuries the man doesn't have.

James Jenner, 42, is simply a hard-working man who saved his money well to
enjoy some of the finer things in life, court was told.

"He doesn't own a boat, cottage, vacation condo. There are no BMWs,
Ferraris or Mercedes. There's no fancy jewelry, no large bank accounts, no
stocks or bonds," said Jay Prober.

He said the Crown went overboard earlier this week when it made Jenner out
to be a globetrotting drug kingpin who should be sentenced to 12 years in
prison and serve at least half before being eligible for parole.

Such a sentence would set a new benchmark for drug cases in Manitoba.

Crown attorney Paul Jensen presented photo albums seized by Jenner that
show trips to nearly 50 hot spots around the world in recent years. Jenner
also owned a Harley Davidson, a home with a pool, Rolex watches and
expensive malt scotch whiskey from Scotland, court was told. "The Crown's
submission was vindictive, unfair and unjust. The Crown is asking for an
outrageously long sentence," Prober said yesterday.

He believes a sentence in the range of four to eight years is appropriate
for Jenner, although he told Queen's Bench Justice Theodore Glowacki a
conditional sentence can't totally be ruled out either.

Glowacki has reserved his decision until Sept. 28. Jenner remains free on
bail until that time.

Jenner -- now the married father of a teenage son -- began delivering
newspapers when he was only 10 and has worked a law-abiding job every day
since, according to his lawyer.

"He worked for the railway, he was a bricklayer, he built swimming pools,"
said Prober.

"He worked all his life and it's not unusual to have a few meagre aspects."
Jenner -- whose most recent job was as a Winnipeg heavy-equipment operator
- -- was convicted earlier this year of possessing 17 kilograms of cocaine
for the purpose of trafficking.

The April 2002 seizure carries an estimated street value of $2 million and
was the largest in Manitoba history.

Police believe the drugs were just the tip of the iceberg for a man who
quietly shot to the top of the local drug scene.

"How many homes and businesses have to be broken into by drug users to
facilitate the James Jenners of the world so he can take his trips to
Whistler and the Caribbean?" Jensen told court earlier this week.

"He has no difficulty making money at the expense of the community."

The drug seizure was made by five members of the Rogue Crew, a specialized
police drug squad set up three years ago to go after high-level players in
the city's drug trade.

Undercover Winnipeg police officers staked out a home and storage facility
where three bags of cocaine were found in a locker registered to Jenner.

Police Det.-Sgt. Brent Benoit told court that Jenner would have to be a
proven veteran in the drug scene to be handling such a large quantity of drugs.

Police believe the drugs had been shipped to Winnipeg from British
Columbia. There is no evidence Jenner is a major player in the drug trade
and was simply a "custodian" at the time he was arrested, Prober argued
yesterday.

"There's no evidence he bought cocaine, owned the cocaine, arranged for its
sale or delivery," he said.

Prober gave the court 36 letters of support yesterday that paint Jenner as
a "kind, considerate human being who is devoted to his family," he said.