Sarnia man charged with drug trafficking mere hours after getting bail released again

A Sarnia man arrested and charged with drug trafficking mere hours after being released on bail managed to get lease one more time.

But Franco Marco Pintus was warned this may be the last time.

“I’m going to tell you, sir, this is your last chance at release,” said justice of the peace Debra Isaac, who issued Pintus’s back-to-back bail conditions.

Pintus, 47, was already facing more than a dozen criminal charges and granted bail on two previous occasions over the past five months when he was released for a third time on March 16 around 4 pm But shortly before 10 am the next morning, he was allegedly caught with cash and 13.77 grams of suspected crystal methamphetamine in a Sarnia grocery store. In addition to possession of meth for the purpose of trafficking, Pintus was charged with resisting Sarnia police Const. Christopher Beauchamp, attempted theft from the Real Canadian Superstore worth less than $5,000, and three counts of failing to comply with probation.

After a brief appearance in court a few hours following his St. Patrick’s Day arrest, Isaac remanded Pintus into custody through the weekend. He was granted $1,000 bail this past Monday – he only has to pay if he’s caught breaking the rules – after defense lawyer Autumn Johnson successfully argued in favor of her client’s release during a reverse-onus hearing.

But Isaac cautioned Pintus he wouldn’t be released that day as a GPS tracker had to be installed first. It’s unclear what day last week he was allowed to leave the jail, but assuming the device was attached he’s now living under house arrest at a home in Sarnia with few exceptions such as for medical appointments and court appearances.

His cases – there are five in total – return to court Thursday.

Pintus was previously facing charges of disguise with intent, theft worth less than $5,000, resisting police, possession of a prohibited weapon without a licence, three counts of possession of a weapon contrary to a court order, six counts of failing to comply with probation, failing to comply with an undertaking, and failing to comply with a release order. The charges, which haven’t been tested in court, stem from alleged incidents in October, November and February.

Pintus was convicted in August of more than a dozen charges and received four months in jail despite the judge feeling it was a lenient sentence for a repetitive string of crimes. Pintus was also sentenced in 2017 to 25 days in jail for theft.

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@ObserverTerry