November 26, 1998

Two Iqaluit men acquitted on conspiracy charges

ANNETTE BOURGEOIS
Nunatsiaq News

IQALUIT — An Alberta judge acquitted two Iqaluit men of drug trafficking conspiracy charges this week, after the Crown failed to prove that the pair were engaged in a conspiracy.

RCMP charged Levi Jeffrey and Danny Savard with conspiracy to traffic narcotics between Jan. 1, 1997 and Mar. 23, 1998. The two were part of a March 24, 1998 RCMP round-up of 29 individuals, following a two-year investigation into Iqaluit's illicit drug trade.

Judge F. W. Coward pointed out the classic, no-frills definition of conspiracy as not just an "intention" of two or more people to commit an illegal act, but an "agreement" of two or more to do that unlawful act.

"If it rests in intention only, it is not indictable," Coward explained.

A conspiracy, he added, will include the completion of that agreement.

Coward said he believes Jeffrey and Savard were part of Iqaluit's drug world, but he said that the evidence presented by the Crown during a week-long trial this week didn't prove they conspired.

"Unquestionably, both accused are participants in the drug subculture, but it does not follow they are conspirators," Coward said. "I conclude there was no agreement to traffic."

Savard, 25, was found guilty, however, of possession of 28 grams of marijuana for the purpose of trafficking. On that conviction, Coward imposed a $1,200 fine and a $120 victims of crime surcharge.

Coward rejected Savard's lawyer's appeal for a conditional discharge.