A truck driver from Brampton Ont. has received an 11-year prison sentence for smuggling $3.5 million worth of cocaine into Canada through the Blue Water Bridge near Sarnia.
Harvinder Singh, a 25-year-old trucker from Brampton, was arrested on March 31, 2021, at the crossing connecting Port Huron, Michigan, and Point Edward. Canada Border Services Agency officers discovered two suitcases containing approximately 62 kilograms of cocaine during an inspection of his tractor-trailer.
The Canada Border Services Agency provided this photo of stacked vacuum-sealed packages of cocaine seized at the Blue Water Bridge in Point Edward on March 31, 2021. (CBSA)
Singh faced charges of importing cocaine and possessing cocaine for the purpose of trafficking, to which he initially pleaded not guilty. The trial commenced in mid-May and spanned four days. After a three-month adjournment, Superior Court Justice Kirk Munroe found Singh guilty of both charges in August. The sentencing, however, was deferred until late last week.
In the culmination of the two-and-a-half-year case, Justice Munroe sentenced Singh to 11 years in prison for importing and an additional nine years for trafficking. Importantly, both sentences will be served concurrently.
Addressing Singh in the Sarnia courtroom’s prisoner’s box, Justice Munroe remarked, “This was wrong. You have to pay for it. It was very serious.” The judge emphasized that the crime was premeditated, not impulsive, and characterized Singh as a courier drug trafficker motivated by financial gain from the misfortunes of others, as opposed to an addict trafficker struggling to get by.
“Mr. Singh certainly knew what he was doing and knew it was unlawful,” Justice Munroe concluded.