A Fort McMurray, Alta., man was handed down his jail sentence in Calgary court Wednesday, after being found guilty earlier this year under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act of importing a controlled substance and possession of cocaine for the purpose of trafficking.
After a seven-day jury trial in March, Bradley Gaudrault was found guilty of having attempted to smuggle 31 kilograms of cocaine into Canada in an SUV through the Carway border crossing in southern Alberta on March 17, 2018.
Canada Border Services Agency has said it was the largest drug bust in the history of the border crossing.
Gaudrault was given eight-and-a-half years jail time for importing a controlled substance, and seven years for the possession of cocaine for the purpose of trafficking, which will be served concurrently.
He is being credited 178 days for time served.
Justice Kristine Eidsvik acknowledged Gaudrault’s troubled past and struggles with addiction in her decision, also noting this was his first offence.
However, she said the amount of narcotics seized could have caused serious harm. Eidsvik has recommended he serve out his sentence at the Bowden Institution.
-With files from Liam Nixon