NORTHWEST TERRITORIES
A man caught with $37,650 cash bundled in stacks of $5,000 and neatly vacuum-packed in plastic bags was handed an 18-month conditional sentence last week for possessing the proceeds of crime.

Lawrence E. Wykes was given an 18-month conditional sentence in Yellowknife court this past weeks for possessing the proceeds of crime. He was pulled over near the border with Alberta with thousands of dollars in cash and just under 10 grams of marijuana. - NNSL file photo

Lawrence E. Wykes, 34, originally from Ontario, and an unidentified driver were pulled over near the border between the NWT and Alberta in May 2011 during a routine RCMP road check. The police smelled marijuana inside the car and arrested both men for possession upon searching the vehicle. Wykes had 9.8 grams of marijuana on him and a marijuana grinder.

The police then located the vacuum-sealed bags of cash in Wykes' backpack and approximately $1,000 more in a hidden compartment in the car. The cash was neatly counted and packaged, according to the court documents, and there were markings in blue pen on the bags.

Wykes maintains his innocence.

“I earned all of that money,” he said, as quoted in court documents. “It was my savings for the whole year, and to watch them just come and take it all was difficult.”

Wykes will be spending the first six months of his sentence under house arrest and will only be allowed to leave his house in Behchoko to go to work. The plan is to give him broader rein for the remaining 12 months, but still require he obey a curfew and get permission to travel out of the territory.