City man sentenced to 10 years for drug, firearms offences
An Edmonton man has been handed a 10-year prison sentence after admitting to a number of drug and weapons offences related to a 2014 police search that turned up semiautomatic assault rifles and handguns in a southwest residence.
Jonathan Ricardo Henry pleaded guilty Friday in Court of Queen’s Bench to possession of cocaine for the purpose of trafficking, as well as several charges related to possession of firearms.
According to an agreed statement of facts, both Henry, 30, and Sherielle Collins, 26, were under police surveillance at an apartment on South Terwillegar Drive in October 2014. Police observed what appeared to be “drug-trafficking activity” at the apartment, which was leased in Collins’ name.
On Oct. 30, 2014, a search warrant was executed on the apartment, and police discovered a wide array of illegal drugs, equipment and paperwork related to drug trafficking, as well as five semi-automatic firearms and ammunition.
The guns — three loaded handguns and two assault rifles with “readily available ammunition” — were recovered from a bedroom closet. Three of the guns were restricted, one was prohibited, and one was non-restricted. The serial numbers had been removed from three of the firearms, and another was noted as stolen in the agreed statement of facts. Two prohibited overcapacity magazines, loaded with 30 rounds each, were also recovered, along with 292 rounds of other types of ammunition.
Police found a quantity of cocaine hydrochloride and cocaine base with a combined value of about $30,000 to $41,000. Along with a number of drug-related materials, investigators seized about 22 grams of heroin and 113 counterfeit Oxycodone pills that turned out to be fentanyl.
A search of Henry’s cellphones revealed a number of text messages related to drug trafficking, according to the agreed statement of facts.
The sentence of 10 years was arrived at through a joint submission by Crown prosecutor Adam Garrett and defence lawyer Kent Teskey during the Friday hearing.
Court heard that before the arrest, Henry was bound by three firearms restrictions — including two lifetime prohibitions — related to previous criminal convictions in London, Ont., Edmonton and Montreal. Collins entered guilty pleas to drug-related charges, but has yet to be sentenced.