Preliminary hearing held for man accused of drug smuggling

By Delon Shurtz - Lethbridge Herald on December 10, 2021.

LETHBRIDGE HERALDdshurtz@lethbridgeherald.com

A two-day preliminary hearing has begun for a 39-year-old Calgary man accused of trying to smuggle millions of dollars worth of drugs into Alberta from the U.S.
The hearing – to determine whether there is enough evidence to warrant a trial – began Thursday in Lethbridge provincial court, where the Crown is expected to call several witnesses before the hearing concludes today. Evidence presented during the preliminary hearing cannot be published.
Amarpreet Singh Sandhu, who elected April 13 to be tried by a Court of Queen’s bench judge, is charged with drug smuggling and drug possession for the purpose of trafficking. The charges relate to a record haul of methamphetamine officers with the Canada Border Services Agency uncovered at the Coutts border on Christmas Day of last year.
Officers referred a semi-truck hauling produce for further inspection, and while examining the shipment, discovered 228 kilograms of methamphetamine. The CBSA reported the drugs were worth about $28.5 million on the street and are equivalent to 2.28 million individual dosages.
The agency said at the time, the bust was the largest seizure of methamphetamine at a land border crossing in Canada.
Officers arrested the driver and turned him and the evidence over to Alberta RCMP.

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