Fentanyl toxic poison in community: Crown

Individuals caught with fentanyl, no matter how small the amount, deserve a custodial sentence, a local prosecutor said Wednesday.

St. Catharines residents Ryan Neil and Lisa Ross pleaded guilty in Ontario Court of Justice in St. Catharines to possession of fentanyl and possession of cocaine stemming from a police raid Jan. 9.

All told, Niagara Regional Police seized 1.2 grams of powdered fentanyl and 0.6 grams of cocaine.

Federal prosecutor Darren Anger told Judge Peter Wilkie a jail sentenced is warranted for individuals who traffic fentanyl as well as those who abuse the powerful painkiller.

The synthetic opioid is often prescribed as a slow-release patch to ease chronic pain. It is up to 100 times stronger than morphine.

The powdered form of the drug, Anger explained, poses a significant risk to health-care professionals and first responders, as well as the general public at large, through accidental exposure.

“It’s a toxic poison that’s present in our community,” Anger said.

The judge gave Neil, 44, credit for the time he had spent in custody pending trial, the equivalent of 54 days, and imposed a further jail term of six days.

Ross is scheduled to return to court April 8 for sentencing.