mayor-elect’s message PAGE A3
Friday, November 21, 2014
remarkable rudy PAGE A13
VOL. 101 NO. 24
www.quesnelobserver.com
local ringette players go big PAGE A17
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Internet drugdealing suspects back in court AUTUMN MacDONALD Observer Reporter Two Quesnel men, facing a host of drug-related charges, were back in court Tuesday to fix a date. March 19 of this year, the Public Prosecution Service of Canada approved 11 charges against Travis James Gaudette, 29 and seven charges against Darryl Arthur Gaudette, 54. Charges included importation of a controlled substance and possession of a controlled substance for the purpose of trafficking. The investigation began in June 2013, when the Prince George RCMP’s Federal Serious Organized Crime Section (FSOC) looked into importation of a controlled substance into Canada. A package containing 500 grams of Butylone was initially intercepted by the Canada Border Service Agency who in turn advised the RCMP. The package had originated in Nanjing, China and was destined for an address in Quesnel. The initial investigation linked the persons believed responsible for the importation of the Butylone to an internet website that claimed to provide “safe alternatives to party drugs.” June 20, 2013, members of FSOC, the Quesnel RCMP and the North District General Investigation Section (Williams Lake) arrested two males at a residence in Quesnel. A search warrant was executed on the residence and a variety of suspected drugs were seized. Items located within the residence supported the belief that various drugs were being trafficked by the occupants. “Investigators believed the website was being used by the suspects to advertise and sell a wide variety of controlled substances to buyers across Canada,” Cpl. White, spokesperson for the B.C. RCMP FSOC said back in March. “The drugs were then being shipped through the mail to the purchaser. The website has since been successfully shut down.” White acknowledges that a significant amount of time passed from the beginning of the investigation until charges were laid. Investigators sent 84 suspected drug samples to the Health Canada Laboratory for analysis. The RCMP release states some of the substances had not previously been seen by lab analysts, thus “time-consuming testing was required.” The two men are back in court next Friday.
DOWNTOWN
Moonlight Madness
Friday Nov. 21st Join the Madness until 11pm!
Golden sunset With colder temperatures and earlier sunsets there’s still beauty in the Cariboo with sunsets like this one captured recently. Autumn MacDoanld photo
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