Sentencing delayed in drug case after man fails to show

Sentencing for a Lethbridge man caught with drugs during a police raid on a southside home two years had to be adjourned Thursday after he failed to show up for court.

Shane David Poole was scheduled to be sentenced at 1 p.m. in Lethbridge provincial court, but when he failed to attend the hearing, the judge agreed to wait until later in the afternoon. When Poole finally contacted his lawyer and said he was still an hour away, an arrest warrant was ordered, but held until Tuesday to see if Poole shows up then.

Poole pleaded guilty in January to a single count of drug possession for the purpose of trafficking. Although he was not sentenced at the time, Crown prosecutor John Oman advised court he and defence lawyer Robin McIntyre would jointly recommend a two-year prison term when Poole returned for sentencing.

Poole was arrested with several others after police raided a home in the 700 block of 13 Street South Jan. 23, 2015. In the basement suite of the home, in which Poole occupied, police found 91 grams of cocaine hidden in the ceiling of the kitchen.

Two others arrested at the same time have already been sentenced. Forest Leopard Visser, who also lived in the basement suite, pleaded guilty last October to one count of drug possession for the purpose of trafficking and was sentenced to two years in a federal penitentiary.

Brady James Galts previously pleaded guilty to one count of drug possession and was fined $1,000.

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