TRIP TO COFFEE SHOP MAY SEND MARIJUANA GROWER TO JAIL

KITCHENER -- A late evening visit to a local coffee shop may land a
21-year-old Kitchener man in jail for breaching an 18-month conditional
sentence he received for growing marijuana in his home.

Thanh Duong was the first person to be convicted and sentenced in more than
40 marijuana-growing cases.

In December, police seized 332 marijuana plants worth an estimated
$230,000, plus $15,000 worth of growing equipment and $4,000 in cash from
Duong's Kitchener home.

In May, Justice Donald MacMillan gave the first-time offender house arrest,
instead of sending him to jail. One condition of his sentence is that Duong
must be home from 11 p.m. to 6 a.m.

Federal drug prosecutor Pat Flynn told MacMillan yesterday that police
found Duong out at about 11 p.m. coming home from a coffee shop.

He asked MacMillan to deal with the matter right away, but the judge
adjourned the sentencing until Oct. 15 at the request of Duong's lawyer.