SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
A 24-year-old man caught naked in an apartment bathroom with a suitcase packed with travel documents, crack cocaine and thousands in cash during a police search in 2013 has been sentenced to 29 months in prison.
Liban Mohammed was sentenced Monday in NWT Supreme Court by Justice Louise Charbonneau after pleading guilty to a charge of possession of crack cocaine for the purpose of trafficking and breaching a condition of his release by not reporting to the RCMP.
The case stems from an RCMP search Nov. 19, 2013 of a unit in Frobisher House. Mohammed - 22 at the time - was found nude along with a suitcase packed with crack and thousands in cash.
Overall, 55.2 grams of crack and more than $12,100 in cash were seized from the apartment, according to a statement of facts read to the judge.
His lawyer, Jordan Stuffco, described Mohammed as a "mid-level" drug dealer in the city.
He was released on bail later that month on conditions that included reporting to the RCMP three times per week, which he did for a while before stopping.
Crown prosecutor Jacqueline Porter said she requested two to three years in prison after negotiations with the defence.
His sentence was reduced from 35 months with credit for time spent in jail since his March arrest.
"I assure you that is a lot less than you would have received after trial," Charbonneau told Mohammed.
Charbonneau decried the collateral impact cocaine is having on the city, saying crimes related to its sale and use are frequently seen in territorial and family court.
The man was the eldest of eight children from Toronto, Stuffco said while outlining his history for the judge. He started attending Ryerson University studying science in that city but moved west in 2012 seeking an oilfield job.
He made his way to Yellowknife and worked in landscaping and at a restaurant. Stuffco said he became involved with cocaine through the "party scene."
The lawyer said Mohammed wants to get counselling and hopes to return to Toronto and apply to return to university.
"I'm truly sorry for what happened," Mohammed said prior to sentencing.
He is prohibited from owning firearms for 10 years, must provide a DNA sample to a national databank, forfeit several items seized from the apartment and pay a $200 victims of crime fine.
If he considers dealing again, Charbonneau told him to imagine how he'd feel if someone robbed a loved one to pay for crack or to imagine homes with empty fridges because families can't afford to pay for both food and drugs.
She wished him luck before he was led away.
