Mountie turned cocaine smuggler sentenced to eight years in prison
Former B. C. Mountie turned cocaine smuggler Rapinder ( Rob) Sidhu was handed an eight- year sentence in Seattle Friday for his leadership role in a massive cross- border drug ring.
U. S. District Court Judge Robert S. Lasnik said Sidhu “desired to get money and be part of a major drug conspiracy and be of use to criminals.”
Sidhu, 46, pleaded guilty last October in the drug conspiracy involving the Hells Angels that saw millions of dollars worth of cocaine smuggled into B. C.
Vehicles arranged by Sidhu and containing almost 500 kilograms of cocaine were intercepted by police in the U. S. in 2007 and 2008.
Sidhu also convinced a Canada Border Services Agency employee to aid the drug gang by allowing vehicles through the border unchecked.
U. S. Attorney Jenny Durkan said Sidhu “betrayed his community and the law enforcement officers who risk their lives to keep us safe.”
“Mr. Sidhu recruited another public servant to the scheme, and used threats of violence to force others into criminal conduct. His greed led him to become a trusted member of an organized crime conspiracy who sold his specialized knowledge from years in law enforcement,” she said.
Sidhu, a former undercover drug cop, resigned from the RCMP in 2003 in the middle of an internal investigation. He was so disgruntled with the Mounties that he went to the dark side, offering his expertise to gangsters and traffickers.
Sidhu has two fraud convictions in B. C. and an outstanding warrant in Quebec, where he was living until he was deported to the U. S. in March 2013. He was also charged and acquitted in Surrey Provincial Court of impersonating a cop to get access to information about the Bacon brothers from a police database.
The investigation of the criminal ring resulted in the seizure of almost 800 kilograms of cocaine and $ 3.5 million in currency.
Brad Bench of U. S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement said Sidhu “has tried to downplay his role in the
It is hard to believe that a former police officer who exploited his police knowledge and contacts to profit from the drug trade did not know exactly what he was doing.
BRAD BENCH
HOMELAND SECURITY
scheme.”
“However, it is hard to believe that a former police officer who exploited his police knowledge and contacts to profit from the drug trade did not know exactly what he was doing,” said Bench, who is with the Homeland Security investigations office in Seattle. He said his officers worked closely with police in B. C.
“Criminals who think they can violate our border’s integrity with impunity, can and will be held accountable in a court of law,” Bench said.
So far, 56 people on both sides of the border have been charged. Two remain fugitives. Former Abbotsford resident Rob Shannon got the longest sentence — 20 years — in March 2009.