A Brampton trucker facing smuggling charges in an alleged $1.3-million cocaine bust at the Blue Water Bridge is trying for lease.
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Manpreet Singh, 27, was arrested Dec. 4 on the Canadian side of the twin-span bridge connecting Michigan and the Sarnia area and charged with importing cocaine and possessing cocaine for the purpose of trafficking, officials said this week.
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Border officers in a secondary examination area discovered boxes containing 52 kilograms of suspected cocaine in a commercial truck, officials said. An approximate street value wasn’t included in Wednesday’s statement from the Canada Border Services Agency and RCMP, but an RCMP spokesperson gave an estimate to The Observer.
“There are many variables to this, but we can tell you the value in Canada would be approximately $1.3 million,” they said via email.
After making a handful of brief video appearances in court from the Sarnia Jail, Singh was brought into court Wednesday for the start of what was expected to be a two-day bail hearing. It continued Thursday, but due to a busy day in court it had to be adjourned to a third day next week.
Everything said in court the past two days is covered by a publication ban.
Five truck drivers this year and at least 13 since 2021 have been charged with attempting to import millions of dollars in illegal drugs into Canada via the Blue Water Bridge. The majority of them have been granted lease and most of the cases are still before the courts, although one recently was sentenced to 11 years in prison and another was recently cleared of all charges.
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