Close X
Friday, November 29, 2024
ADVT 
National

Alexander Lisi, Rob Ford's Former Driver Found Not Guilty Of All Drug Charges

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 08 May, 2015 01:42 PM
    TORONTO — Former Toronto mayor Rob Ford's friend Alexander (Sandro) Lisi was found not guilty on drug-related charges Friday after a judge attacked the credibility of an undercover officer who was key to the case.
     
    Lisi's co-accused — Jamshid (Jay) Bahrami — was also found not guilty. Both men had been charged with trafficking cannabis.
     
    Lisi, 36, was also charged with possession of a small quantity of marijuana and possession of the proceeds of crime, while Bahrami was charged with cocaine possession.
     
    Lisi had $900 in marked police money when he was arrested — allegedly from an undercover officer's purchase of 220 grams of pot in Bahrami's dry cleaning store.
     
    Justice Ramez Khawly said the Crown had been unable to prove the entire case beyond a reasonable doubt and emphasized his issues with the undercover officer's testimony.
     
    "I kept looking for areas where eventually the undercover officer would shore up his credibility. It proved to be a fruitless exercise," said Khawly. "The long and short of it is that on all material points, I simply cannot rely on his evidence."
     
    Lisi and Bahrami were arrested after a months-long police investigation that involved surveillance by officers, electronic tracking, aerial spotting and a camera mounted on a street pole.
     
    Court heard that police began watching Lisi in June 2013 because they believed he had swapped drugs for the return of Ford's cellphone earlier that year — a situation noted by Khawly in his ruling.
     
    "It would be naive to suggest Lisi was investigated in a vacuum. The connection to the mayor of Toronto loomed large," he said.
     
    Lisi also faces separate charges of extortion related to trying to retrieve the infamous Ford "crack video."
     
    He has yet to stand trial in that case.

    MORE National ARTICLES

    Allan Schoenborn Who Murdered His 3 Children Seeks Escorted Day Trips

    Allan Schoenborn Who Murdered His 3 Children Seeks Escorted Day Trips
    The doctors at the psychiatric hospital where Allan Schoenborn is being held are recommending that he be granted escorted day outings.

    Allan Schoenborn Who Murdered His 3 Children Seeks Escorted Day Trips

    Canadian Military Plane Arrives In Nepal: Officials

    Canadian Military Plane Arrives In Nepal: Officials
    KATHMANDU, Nepal — Officials say a Canadian military plane carrying an advance disaster-assistance team has landed in Kathmandu.

    Canadian Military Plane Arrives In Nepal: Officials

    Dry Cleaner Key To Drug Deal Involving Rob Ford Pal, Crown Argues

    Dry Cleaner Key To Drug Deal Involving Rob Ford Pal, Crown Argues
    TORONTO — A Toronto court is hearing that a dry cleaner caught up in the intense police investigation of then-mayor Rob Ford was more than just incidental to drug deals involving an undercover cop.

    Dry Cleaner Key To Drug Deal Involving Rob Ford Pal, Crown Argues

    B.C. Chief Who Occupied Premier's Office Expects Arrests In Biosolids Blockade

    B.C. Chief Who Occupied Premier's Office Expects Arrests In Biosolids Blockade
    MERRITT, B.C. — A British Columbia First Nations leader is anticipating arrests as a protest continues against the spreading of sewage-treatment waste in the Nicola Valley.

    B.C. Chief Who Occupied Premier's Office Expects Arrests In Biosolids Blockade

    RCMP Arrests Quebec Woman Who Allegedly Hacked Computers And Scared Children

    RCMP Arrests Quebec Woman Who Allegedly Hacked Computers And Scared Children
    JOLIETTE, Que. — RCMP investigators have arrested a 27-year-old Quebec woman who allegedly took control of computers by remote control and frightened people, including underage children in Canada and abroad.

    RCMP Arrests Quebec Woman Who Allegedly Hacked Computers And Scared Children

    Vigil To Pay Tribute To Slain Saskatchewan Mother And Three Children

    Vigil To Pay Tribute To Slain Saskatchewan Mother And Three Children
    TISDALE, Sask. — A rural Saskatchewan community will host a candlelight vigil tonight to honour a mother and her three children who were killed in a murder-suicide last week.

    Vigil To Pay Tribute To Slain Saskatchewan Mother And Three Children