BRANTFORD A drug dealer arrested as he rode away from the Six Nations Police station involved others in his serious charges.
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Edward Anthony Seery, 44, was already being investigated for trafficking cocaine and fentanyl when he visited the police station on an unrelated matter in May this year.
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As he was leaving in a taxi, police followed and eventually did a traffic stop, but a drug enforcement office noticed Seery leaning forward toward he driver’s seat of the cab as officers approached.
When he and another passenger were arrested, police found baggies of colored fentanyl under the driver’s seat – closer to the back of the vehicle than to the actual driver.
All three occupants of the taxi were arrested and charged with drug offenses, but Seery quickly pleaded guilty.
“You’ve apologized to the cab driver and your friend in the vehicle who were charged because they were in the cab,” said Justice Colette Good as she sentenced Seery to three years in prison on top of the time he had already served awaiting trial .
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“Your crime dragged them into this world. The guy was giving you a ride and he ended up hauled out in handcuffs.”
Good also pointed out the importance of a guilty plea, especially at a time when the courts are overloaded.
“Not a lot of people pleaded guilty to fentanyl,” said the judge, noting the normal sentence means prison time.
“People take their chances and have a long and protracted trial and are usually convicted, but you didn’t play games like that.”
Seery, who grew up in both Toronto and Simcoe, said he hopes to move from the area once he’s out of prison. That plan met with the judge’s approval.
“In a world where you’ve got a three-page record, it’s a great plan to move away and start fresh.”
Seery was found with almost 18 grams of fentanyl and three grams of cocaine.
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When he was arrested, a small package of drugs fell on the ground and he tried to stomp on it to grind it into the dirt.
“There’s no way you could live on this planet and not know that when you’re dealing in fentanyl you’re potentially handing out death sentences,” said Good.
“It’s one of the most devastating things to this community and to Six Nations. In some cases, it’s costing people their lives and that creates a ripple effect for everyone who loves that person.”
Good added that dealing in drugs also contributes to crime because it sets up a community of addicted people who need funds for their drugs and commit crimes that affect innocent people, passing on the cost of addiction to them.
“Six Nations is a particularly vulnerable community,” said Good. “It’s a community with many people struggling with addiction and you were trafficking in this life-altering drug.
The judge agreed with the joint submission of 156 days of time served, plus three years.
She placed Seery under a weapon ban for the rest of her life.
@EXPSGamble
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