Guy Quenneville
Northern News Services
Wednesday, July 11, 2007
YELLOWKNIFE - Three men arrested two years ago for their involvement in a major cocaine trafficking operation out of the now-defunct Right Spot bar have pleaded guilty to numerous drug offences.
Kan Sui "Ken" Wong, Larry Mak and Leonard Haynes appeared in NWT Supreme Court Friday.
Wong, the 58-year-old Chinese-born owner of the former Right Spot pub on 50th Street, pleaded guilty to one count of trafficking cocaine, one count of money laundering and one count of tax evasion.
According to information in court, an undercover RCMP operation begun in 2003 determined Wong to be a cocaine supplier.
Crown attorney Shelley Tkatch described Wong as "a center hub with multiple spokes" - a supplier for several dealers, all independent of each other.
A review of the Right Spot's financial records revealed an enormous amount of cash flowing through the business.
"Deposits ... showed the amount of funds deposited per year was approximately $200,000 to $300,000 more than the annual reported gross," said Tkatch.
Wong claimed an annual income of $36,000 in 2004, added Tkatch.
"Money made from drug sales was being co-mingled with the accounts of the Right Spot."
Wong, in a statement read by his attorney Robert Davidson, said: "I have lived in the community for many years and was a good citizen until greed interfered with my morality and work-ethic."
In a joint submission, Tkatch and Davidson asked the judge for a sentence of five years with credit given to Wong for serving six months in remand, for a total sentence of four and a half years. They also recommended Wong pay a $496,000 fine.
Court was told the profits from the sale of drugs in 2004 and 2005 totaled about $400,000.
Justice Ted Richard adjourned sentencing to July 17.
Larry Mak and Leonard Haynes were sentenced later Friday by Justice John Vertes.
Mak pleaded guilty to one count of trafficking cocaine and one count of unsafe storage of two handguns.
Mak, the former manager of the Right Spot, was sentenced to six and a half years, although his time in remand at the North Slave Correctional Facility means he will actually serve three and a half years.
While Mak was never seen by undercover police at the Right Spot, "it is clear that Mak was the operational mind behind the enterprise, in supplying dealers in and out of the Right Spot," said Tkatch.
Undercover surveillance of the pub and some of its staff confirmed a regular pattern of drug activity, she said.
The drugs were supplied from a trailer at the Con Camp trailer park. Two undercover cops who began hanging out at the Right Spot befriended a man who lived at the trailer.
Referring to himself as a "rock star," the trailer resident called it the "crack shack."
Drivers were frequently observed driving to the trailer, going to the front door, and then immediately driving back to the Right Spot.
"When the supply got low, members of the Right Spot would call Mak, asking him for more drugs," said Tkatch.
The callers often spoke in code. Court was told that one "banana" referred to an individual piece of crack cocaine. Similarly, if somebody said they were "hungry," it meant the bar was low on cocaine.
When Mak was arrested at his residence in October 2005, police found some marijuana under his sink, along with a Gucci watch, Versace sunglasses, a Prada wallet, several flat-screen TVs, a home theatre system and some DVD players.
Haynes, who was described as an occasional helper and was only see once dealing with money from the sale of drugs, received a sentence of two and a half years.
But having served 15 months in remand, Haynes will spend no additional time in prison. He was also sentenced to one year of probation.
Haynes' attorney, Patrick Cozannet, said Haynes plans on returning to his hometown of Edmonton to resume work as a welder.
Justice Vertes said both Mak and Haynes' sentences - submitted jointly to the court by the Crown and the defense - "are very much on the lenient side."
