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9 | O akville B eaver | T hursday,F ebruary 13,2020 insidehalton.com 905.874.2800 1 THEATRE LN, BRAMPTON, ON L6V 0A3 SPENDMARCH BREAK AT THE ROSE! EXPERIENCE THE JOYOUS MUSIC OF SPLASH'N BOOTS. Connecting children and families throughmusic, this show inspires us to be present together - and have fun! SPLASH'N BOOTS MARCH 18, 2020 2 PM "We believe in aworld where every child is seen, heard, and loved for exactly who they are!" - Splash'nBoots Stating that he was the "the principal person responsible for orchestrating these importa- tions," a Superior court judge has sentenced an Oakville father to 16 years in jail for his key role in a major cocaine smuggling ring in Canada. Donovan Brown, 48, was found guilty of two counts of im-found guilty of two counts of im-f porting cocaine into Canada along with one count of conspir- acy to import firearms into Can- ada. The cocaine importing of- fences involved four differentfences involved four differentf couriers entering Canada from St. Lucia on two separate dates in February and March of 2015, Justice James Stribopoulos said in his ruling. In both instances, Canada Border Services Agency officers discovered cocaine "taped to their bodies," the judge said in his recent ruling, adding the to- tal amount of cocaine was about eight kilograms. Brown, a father of four who graduated from Sheridan Col- lege, was found guilty of two counts of importing cocaine for his role in "organizing the im- portation of the eight kilograms of cocaine that the four couriers brought into Canada on those two dates," the judge said. However, he didn't orches- trate the importations on his own. David Blevins, 40, also of Oak- ville, pled guilty before trial to two counts of importing cocaine for his role in helping Brown fa-for his role in helping Brown fa-f cilitate the smuggling. Blevins received an eight-year jail sen- tence. Brown also tried to import guns into Canada, court heard, a conviction that came primarily from intercepted telephone con-from intercepted telephone con-f versations. Given the verdict, the jury concluded that there was an agreement for Brown to import 40-50 firearms unlawfully from the United States into Canada, the judge said in his ruling. "Firearms in the hands of criminals pose a grave threat to public safety," the judge said. "In recent years, one need only read the newspaper or watch the news to realize that this is a prob- lem of epidemic proportions in the Greater Toronto Area. When wielded by criminals, handguns are implements of destruction that cause death and life-alter- ing physical injuries. For vic- tims and their families, the phys- ical and psychological toll of gun violence is immeasurable." The judge sentenced Brown to a total of 16 years in federal jail, noting the importing of eight kilograms of cocaine, "an extremely dangerous and addic- tive narcotic," is significant and a substantial amount. Brown's leadership role in the scheme also couldn't be ignored, the judge said. "Based on the evidence at tri- al, I am satisfied beyond a rea- sonable doubt that Mr. Brown was the principal person respon- sible for orchestrating these im- portations," he said. Brown had an apparent "in- difference" towards the poten- tial harm that both the cocaine and the firearms would cause in the community, Stribopoulos added. CRIME MEN SENTENCED TO 16 AND 8 YEARS IN COCAINE SMUGGLING RING LOUIE ROSELLA lrosella@metroland.com RCMP charge multiple people in large cocaine smuggling ring in Canada in 2015 in which some couriers tried to get the drugs into the country by taping it to their bodies RCMP photo