Hells Angels associate sentenced to 18 months in prison for drug trafficking conspiracy

Narcotics, including cocaine, were delivered from Montreal to the Abitibi area on Wednesday. He was sentenced to 18 months in prison for his role in a human trafficking network that delivered.

His 38-year-old Benoît Nantel-Gagnon of Pointe his Carme packed his belongings, knowing that his sentence would lead to imprisonment. I took the bag to the court in Montreal. Quebec Court Judge Pierre Rabel agreed with a joint recommendation to sentence Nantels Gagnon to prison. Nanter Gagnon was nowhere to be seen when he rounded up suspected drug-trafficking networks who delivered several kilos of cocaine to

Nearly a dozen people were arrested in an investigation called Project Macure. The investigation began as an inquiry into the death of her Bardia Gorji, who was murdered in 2020. Homicide investigators found evidence linking his death to a drug trafficking network.

Nantel-Gagnon made a surprise appearance in a Montreal court in May after months of police raids, accusing him of trading criminally acquired goods. pleaded guilty to conspiracy. He was released on bail after stating that he needed to take care of personal matters and his mother before starting his sentence.

According to a joint statement of facts filed with Labelle, a human trafficking network was being investigated when police officers detained a suspect who had returned from the Abitibi region on April 4, 2021. I was. To avoid potential violent incidents. Their car was searched and police found $52,000 in cash in him.

The following day, Nantel-Gagnon's conversation was tapped. He told another person that he had to "refund" the money by 1pm.

Defense attorney her Isabella Teolis said the sentencing recommendations were based in part on Nantel-Gagnon's criminal record. This includes convictions in Project Maggot Mastiff, an investigation led by the Chelete du Quebec into how the Hells Angels and the Montreal Mafia worked together to control drug trafficking in the city. is included. Nantel-Gagnon, who was charged with drug trafficking and conspiracy to do the same in 2016, pleaded guilty to possession of criminal proceeds in 2019.

Kevin Cluse Trembre, 33, and Simon Saint-Germain-Monpetit, 30, of Montreal, who delivered cocaine from Montreal to Abitibi for the network investigated by Project Macurée, were found guilty Wednesday. Admitted.

Crousset-Tremblay first appeared before the judge on Wednesday morning. He pleaded guilty to conspiracy, trafficking of controlled substances, and possession with intent to traffick. His small role in the network was revealed in May 2021.

Teolis said investigators learned that Crousset-Tremblay was part of a group carrying cocaine, cannabis and methamphetamine while Project Maculé was underway. I was. to the Abitibi region.

After intercepting dozens of phone conversations, investigators learned that from Montreal he had moved to an address in Ballote, a town in Abitibi, more than 550 kilometers north. . This location was used to store drugs for the network. On May 19, 2021, Crousset-Tremblay and another man charged with Project Maculé were arrested at a rented chalet in Barraute with two kilograms of cocaine and $11,000 in his possession.

The sentencing stage of the Crousset-Tremblay case will begin in his November.

Saint-Germain-Montpetit pleaded guilty to the same charges, and Teolis told the court that from March 2021 he worked for the network until April. An intercept revealed that he delivered cash and drugs at least five times in the last two months.

He received $2,450 in at least two deliveries. In March 2021, he told accomplices that he delivered $150,000 on one of his trips.

When police executed a search warrant at the home of a well-known drug dealer in Abitibi, Saint-Germain-Monpetit delivered more than eight of him, according to a joint statement filed with the court. I found the accounting records I disclosed.

On April 22, 2021, Saint-Germain his Montpetit and his accomplice were pulled over while driving in Montlaurier, and police seized a kilogram of his cocaine from the vehicle.

Teolis said she and the prosecutor in the case will make a joint recommendation on her Mont Petit sentencing on September 12.

pcherry@postmedia.com

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