Toronto man sentenced on cocaine charge

A Toronto man arrested last October at a St. Catharines apartment that was the scene of a shooting a month prior that injured three men has been sentenced to 18 months in jail for cocaine trafficking.

Due to the amount of time he had spent in presentence custody, however, Marc OwusuBoamah has 160 days left to serve.

The 23-year-old, who said he hopes to study political science or business at university, was also placed on probation for two years.

“I have seen the brighter side of life and I’d like to do better,” Owusu-Boamah said during his sentencing hearing Tuesday in Ontario Court of Justice in St. Catharines.

Last September, three men were shot during an altercation at the apartment on Church Street in downtown St. Catharines.

A police investigation revealed three tenants of an apartment unit had allowed men from the Toronto area to sell cocaine from their residence.

Police said the shooting was the result of an altercation that had taken place inside the apartment.

Following the shooting, police learned from confidential informants and concerned residents in the area that the unit was still being used to sell illicit drugs.

Officers executed a search warrant there in October.

During the raid, OwusuBoamah jumped from a kitchen window and into the arms of the Niagara Regional Police emergency task unit.

The defendant was carrying a quantity of cash, Narcan, which is medication used to block the effects of an opioid overdose, and nearly 80 grams of cocaine.

He was on probation at the time of the offence following a conviction for drug possession.

Three other men, all residents of Toronto, were also arrested.

Police seized 112 grams of cocaine and crack cocaine, 7.5 grams of fentanyl powder and 1.2 grams of crystal meth with an estimated street value of $13,500 and $1,800 in Canadian and U.S. currency.