Latest news with #drugtrafficking
The Guardian
19 minutes ago
- The Guardian
FBI investigates drug-trafficking ‘epidemic' in prison also housing Ice detainees: ‘A lot of corruption'
A private US prison contractor that is expanding its immigrant detention business amid increased Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice) arrests is running a federal facility that is being investigated by the FBI for rampant drug trafficking and violence, a Guardian investigation has found. Even some staff who work for the contractor, CoreCivic, are implicated in drug smuggling at the Cibola county correctional center (CCCC) in New Mexico that is owned and operated by the company on a government contract. Cibola has faced various problems, including allegations by the FBI of extensive drug smuggling, including involvement by some guards, and an alarming number of deaths at the facility, the Guardian can reveal. The facility, about an hour west from Albuquerque, primarily houses people apprehended by the federal US Marshals Service (USMS) and local county detainees, with immigrants in Ice custody making up about 30% of the population. An FBI agent wrote in October 2024, in an affidavit submitted to a New Mexico federal court as part of a pursuit of suspects engaged in drug smuggling into Cibola, that there was a 'drug trafficking epidemic' at the facility. The affidavit, obtained by the Guardian, accuses some CoreCivic employees at the facility of smuggling in drugs and fueling the lucrative trade among the detained population that has led to overdose deaths. A number of FBI informants 'reported that there were dirty COs [correctional officers] at CCCC, who would smuggle drugs and other contraband in for inmates', reads the FBI affidavit seen by the Guardian, adding: 'One CO concealed suboxone and methamphetamine in his boots to get past security and later drops the drugs in a cell while conducting a search of a cell.' The investigation is based on hundreds of pages of court documents, FBI records, police reports, 911 call logs, reports from medical investigators working with the coroner's office and numerous lawsuits exclusively accessed by the Guardian. The FBI began investigating the Cibola facility last September and the network of gangs and dealers allegedly bringing in drugs. That same month, according to records obtained by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) following a freedom of information request, CoreCivic pitched Cibola to Ice as an ideal location for expanding immigrant detention. 'CoreCivic proposes to work with ICE on a mutually agreeable percentage of the 1,129-bed facility that would meet ICE's need,' the CoreCivic document reads. 'We are confident that the Cibola facility would prove to be a valuable resource to the El Paso AOR [area of responsibility].' Despite CoreCivic's confidence about its Cibola operations, an FBI document shows otherwise. 'CoreCivic struggles to keep CCCC operating in a safe and efficient manner, confronting many of the same issues that face other correctional facilities nationwide,' the FBI affidavit reads. 'The quantities of drugs seized are exceptionally large, given that they are located within a secure federal facility.' It is unclear whether CoreCivic disclosed the drug problems and the FBI's scrutiny in its pitch to Ice, since much of the document is redacted. But according to FBI records, CoreCivic probably knew about the federal criminal investigation – and members of what the company calls its intelligence unit have actively collaborated with the bureau. 'We continue to hear claims and allegations about our Cibola County Correctional Center (CCCC) that are false and misleading. The reality is that we provide a safe, humane and appropriate environment for those entrusted to us by our government partners at this facility, and we are constantly striving to deliver an even better standard of care,' the company said in a statement to the Guardian. 'We have a zero-tolerance policy for the introduction of contraband into our facilities. The introduction of contraband in correctional settings is a nationwide challenge that requires close and constant collaboration to prevent.' The company also confirmed it provided intelligence to the FBI investigation, and added it was 'grateful for the investigative efforts' of the agencies involved in the case. 'We share their commitment to keeping everyone safe,' it said. At least 15 Cibola detainees have died there prematurely since 2018, the Guardian discovered, a relatively high number, documents show. 'Certainly one would imagine that information regarding these types of investigations and this number of deaths in custody would be relevant to Ice's consideration of whether or not this is a suitable facility for expansion of its contract [with CoreCivic],' said Eunice Cho, senior staff attorney with the ACLU's National Prison Project. Asked for comment, CoreCivic said in a statement that it took 'very seriously' anyone dying while in its care and was 'deeply saddened' by any such death. 'At all our facilities, including the Cibola County Correctional Center (CCCC), the safety, health and well-being of the individuals entrusted to our care and our dedicated staff is our top priority,' the company said. Tennessee-based CoreCivic is the second largest private corrections company in the US; it is publicly traded and operates scores of facilities in almost 20 states. As the Trump administration continues its mass deportation agenda, by arresting, detaining and deporting thousands of immigrants plucked from the US interior – in a switch of focus from the US-Mexico border – many facilities nationwide, and especially in hotspots, are overcrowded. Troubled facilities such as Cibola continue to be used to detain increasing numbers of immigrants – and the company is cashing in. In 2025 so far, the Guardian calculated that, according to company press statements and financial reports, CoreCivic has significantly increased its immigration detention portfolio. Seven facilities owned by the company have signed on to contracts to hold more Ice detainees and the company bought an additional Ice facility from another private prison contractor. In response to a lengthy request for comment, CoreCivic did not respond to the numbers tallied by the Guardian. Exact numbers are redacted, but according to a contract document from May 2025, Ice increased its payment, per bed, to CoreCivic for detention services at Cibola. The FBI declined to comment for this story or to confirm if its investigation is still under way, but the New Mexico US attorney's office in effect confirmed that Cibola is still being investigated. 'We cannot comment on the status of ongoing investigations or provide details beyond what has already been made public,' the US attorney's office told the Guardian. The USMS did not respond to a detailed request for comment. Meanwhile, the drug problems persist there, according to interviews. Although the FBI investigation has primarily focused on smuggling into the USMS and the local county units within Cibola, further reporting reveals that drug smuggling and consumption are occurring in the Ice units, too. Two immigrant men at Cibola under Ice custody revealed that they have observed drugs being introduced into the facility and sold and consumed in their unit, as recently as May. In one instance, one of the men, who spoke to the Guardian, said he and his friend were threatened by a dealer in the unit in May after mistakenly being given an envelope disguised as mail from an attorney. The envelope contained 'strips of paper' that the pair recognized as the kind of contraband widely purchased by detainees, for a steep price. The items were probably strips containing Suboxone, or the buprenorphine or naloxone generic versions of a prescription medication used to treat opioid addiction and which provides a slight high. When the detainee who allegedly operated as a drug dealer discovered that the envelope was erroneously given to one of the men, he threatened them. 'He told us, 'This paper is mine,'' the man recounted in a call from inside the detention center. 'He then said, 'I'll give each of you $500. Accept it, or I'll kill you.' And we stood there with our mouths open,' he said. To avoid being hurt, and to avoid any trouble that could jeopardize their immigration cases, the two say they tried to report the interaction to CoreCivic guards but the guards ignored their pleas. As word got out, other detainees jeered at them: the two were now targets, having to watch their backs. Days later, for attempting to report the threat, the dealer assaulted them, hitting both of them and smearing feces on one of them, the man said. The Guardian is withholding his and his friend's identities at their request, as they fear retaliation. ' Last year it was our pretty clear understanding that the drug issue was limited to the US Marshals' side,' said Sophia Genovese, a faculty member at Georgetown University Law Center and a former attorney at the New Mexico Immigrant Law Center (NMILC), which advocates for Ice detainees. 'And the only time men in Ice custody, as far as we know, saw any drugs was when it was accidentally sent to their unit through the kitchen. 'It was a bit surprising to hear that someone in the Ice unit was the intended recipient of drugs,' she added, as the problems had previously appeared to be limited to the other units. CoreCivic said in response that: 'We have a robust grievance process available to all detainees that provides multiple safe and discrete avenues for concerns to be raised.' The Department of Homeland Security, which oversees Ice, vehemently denied any drug smuggling taking place inside the Ice units at Cibola. 'Allegations that drug smuggling is taking place in the ICE Section of the Cibola County Corrections Center are FALSE. In fact, there has not been a single report of drugs within the ICE section of the facility,' the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) assistant secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement to the Guardian. Sign up to This Week in Trumpland A deep dive into the policies, controversies and oddities surrounding the Trump administration after newsletter promotion She continued: 'Any claim that there are subprime conditions at ICE detention centers are false. Ensuring the safety, security, and well-being of individuals in our custody is a top priority at ICE. ICE continues to move forward with the contract in its efforts to fulfill the President's mandate to arrest and deport criminal illegal aliens.' Amid the scandal, a tragedy has been unfolding at Cibola. At least 15 people detained there have died since May 2018, the Guardian's research has revealed. ' That is a significant number of people to have died in one facility during that period of time,' Cho said. 'It indicates that the operation of the facility itself has serious problems. It seems there are significant operational problems that are leading to, especially in the case of suicide, likely preventable deaths.' CoreCivic further responded: 'Our facilities have trained emergency response teams who work to ensure that any individual in distress receives appropriate medical care.' Cibola has operated since the 1990s and was acquired by CoreCivic in 1998. In 2016, the facility was shuttered when CoreCivic lost its contract with the federal Bureau of Prisons. The rare step followed reports of medical neglect and questionable deaths, published by the Nation. However, later that year the facility reopened with a USMS and Ice contract with CoreCivic, housing pre-trial federal detainees and local county detainees but also immigrants and asylum seekers. Since the second Trump administration began, the number of immigrants detained in Cibola has risen to 224 in late June from 160 in January. Austin Kocher, an assistant research professor at Syracuse University who tracks Ice enforcement, estimated an average of 405 Ice detainees in late April, with recent numbers sitting at just more than 200. The facility has the capacity to hold a total of about 1,200 detainees. 'Our biggest concern has always been lack of medical care,' Genovese said. According to CoreCivic, the facility is 'subject to multiple layers of oversight' and is also 'monitored very closely by our government partners to ensure full compliance with policies and procedures'. Due to CoreCivic's contract with Ice, DHS oversight offices conduct inspections of the facility and publish reports on the conditions. But Genovese said the watchdog inspections were limited and she had little faith in their effectiveness. The FBI began investigating CoreCivic's operation of Cibola after problems of drug smuggling, violence and corruption escalated until federal judges began expressing concerns to the New Mexico US attorney's office and matters reached the bureau, according to FBI records reviewed by the Guardian. More than 40 FBI informants, including gang members, drug dealers and Mexican organized crime operatives in New Mexico, revealed that a network of gangs – both inside and outside Cibola – worked together to bring drugs into the facility, most commonly fentanyl, methamphetamine, Suboxone and heroin, the FBI records show. From January to October 2024 there were 43 drug seizures inside the facility, although that was fewer than past years, according to an FBI affidavit submitted on 29 October 2024 in the process of the agency's investigation into contraband. The gangs involved in the smuggling operations include the New Mexico Syndicate, the state's largest prison gang, Mexican American crime outfits known as the Sureños network and the Paisas gang, and the neo-Nazi Aryan Brotherhood. An FBI agent explained that despite being rivals on the street, the gangs work together to distribute drugs inside jails. 'I have observed traditional gang rivalries set aside and associations be formed to distribute fentanyl and methamphetamine and make money,' Jordan Spaeth, an FBI special agent working in the bureau's violent gang taskforce in Albuquerque, wrote in the affidavit. 'Gang allegiance is secondary to money and profit.' It is not easy to obtain illicit drugs inside a federal facility, leading to an extremely lucrative drug trade. As Spaeth, the FBI agent, noted in the document, a pound of meth on the street can cost $1,000. Inside Cibola, the equivalent would cost $272,400. One fentanyl pill goes for $50, while a single Suboxone strip is priced at $100. People often pay for the drugs through intermediaries, including spouses, families and associates on the outside. The most common payment method is through CashApp transactions on contraband cellphones, which are also smuggled into Cibola. One immigrant man detained in one of the Ice units, who cannot be named for his own safety, confirmed to the Guardian the use of apps to transfer money. The FBI documented that one inmate made $10,000 inside Cibola in less than one month just by selling meth. The drugs are sneaked into Cibola in various ways. As the FBI affidavit explained, and as one of the immigrant men verified, people receive phoney 'legal mail', which facility staff don't first open and that actually contains drugs. There is also the 'throw-over' method, in which outside associates drive up and launch packages into the recreation yard to be recovered by inmates. FBI informants alleged, however, according to the FBI affidavit, that CoreCivic staff members working at Cibola have also been responsible for smuggling drugs into the facility. One informant told the FBI that a CoreCivic correctional officer, who was later fired, had probably smuggled 700 fentanyl pills into the Cibola. One guard, the FBI documented in its affidavit, was paid $5,000 for each time she brought drugs into the facility. Another CoreCivic employee, a key manager whose name the Guardian is withholding as it was unable to reach the individual for comment, assigned a team of inmates to distribute food and items throughout the facility and those inmates would use the opportunity to distribute illicit drugs, the FBI document says. Furthermore, in May 2024, a different, unnamed correctional officer caught some detainees smoking methamphetamine. The guard confiscated the drugs and submitted a report, despite hesitance by the aforementioned manager, the FBI document says, adding that the guard later found the drugs had disappeared from evidence, photos had been deleted and their report was missing. The guard believed the manager was responsible for the attempted cover-up, according to the FBI affidavit. Weeks later, the FBI says that same manager assigned the guard to a high-security section of Cibola, despite the guard not having the experience or rank to be there. During the shift, two gang members escaped from their cell and assaulted the guard, knocking them out and locking them in a cell. The guard, beaten and bruised, was later rescued and reported that they suspected the manager was involved in facilitating the assault. The manager was later fired by CoreCivic for disciplinary problems, the FBI affidavit says, but does not appear to have been charged with any crimes in the case. But in 2023, another guard was sentenced to 24 months in prison for smuggling meth into the facility. The FBI affidavit says that starting pay for a CoreCivic guard is less than $48,000 a year, yet dealers pay guards $3,000 to $6,000 per package of narcotics brought into the facility. 'A CO [correctional officer] who imports three packages a week, every week, could make twice as much in a month as they make a year,' the FBI affidavit states. In one instance documented in a New Mexico wrongful death lawsuit filed against CoreCivic by the family of a young woman who died of an overdose inside Cibola, a correctional officer confessed to smuggling drugs, explaining she needed the extra money because she was on the brink of losing her home. An aghast immigrant in an Ice unit at Cibola said in an interview: 'I thought the US was a country of laws, like they say on the television – that they took security and safety seriously. But I have now learned that there is a lot of corruption here.' Ice detention centers throughout the country are overwhelmed. The DHS is waiting on a cascade of funds from the vast spending bill Donald Trump signed into law on 4 July to further increase detention space throughout the country, even as some controversial new facilities are being rushed into operation. According to the CoreCivic pitch document obtained by the ACLU, the company says Cibola is an appropriate place to further incarcerate immigrants, proposing that the facility be entirely made up of Ice detainees, or a 'mutually agreeable percentage'. 'Regardless of the population, CoreCivic is dedicated to delivering excellent service to meet the partner's needs,' the company wrote. On Monday, part 2 of the Guardian investigation into the Cibola county correctional center
New York Times
19 minutes ago
- Politics
- New York Times
Corruption Scandal Puts Mexico's President on Defense Against Trump
Two former officials are on the run, accused of secretly leading a criminal group. Their old boss, now a powerful senator in the president's party, is being grilled over what he knew. And the timing could not be worse for Mexico's president, who faces the corruption scandal as President Trump doubles down on accusations that drug cartels have the Mexican government in their grip. At the scandal's center is the senator, Adán Augusto López Hernández, a former interior minister and governor of Tabasco State, and a close confidante of former President Andrés Manuel López Obrador. Two men Mr. López appointed in Tabasco, a secretary of security and state police chief, are now wanted by the Mexican government and Interpol, facing charges of leading a criminal group involved in drug trafficking. Mr. López has not been accused of any crimes, and President Claudia Sheinbaum and her ruling party, Morena, have closed ranks behind him. But the case strikes at the heart of one of Mr. Trump's most sensitive accusations: that Mexico's political elite is unwilling to purge itself of the corruption that has long provided the cartels cover and impunity. The Mexican government has denied those allegations. The scandal comes after Mr. Trump pushed Ms. Sheinbaum to allow U.S. troops to deploy inside Mexico to combat the cartels. Although the United States and Mexico on Thursday extended trade talks, Mr. Trump has repeatedly threatened steep tariffs to pressure Mexico into doing more against cartels and drug trafficking. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
Montreal drug case threatened after prosecutor admits to relationship with defence lawyer
A criminal case against an alleged drug trafficking network operating in Quebec could be derailed after one of the Crown prosecutors on the case admitted to having a physical relationship with a member of the defence team while pre-trial hearings were underway. The admission, initially reported in La Presse, is confirmed in court documents entered into evidence earlier this week. The documents reveal prosecutor Alice Bourbonnais-Rougeau initially lied to her supervisors about having an intimate relationship with defence lawyer Mathieu Rondeau-Poissant, before finally admitting to it. The two lawyers were part of opposing legal teams in a case against eight men accused of operating an online cannabis trafficking network alleged to have ties to organized crime. Bourbonnais-Rougeau is part of a special team of prosecutors in Montreal that deals with complex cases, the Bureau de la grande criminalité et des affaires spéciales. Rondeau-Poissant represented one of the accused, David Keith Bishop. Provincial police say the network used fraudulently obtained Health Canada medical certificates to produce and sell cannabis online, involving 70,000 transactions totalling $15 million. Bourbonnais-Rougeau and Rondeau-Poissant are no longer working on the case, but defence lawyers have filed a request to halt proceedings, alleging the relationship was a conflict of interest and that the two may have exchanged privileged information. Relationship 'not the best idea of the century' The eight accused were arrested in January 2024, and several pre-trial hearings have been held since. Court documents show the relationship between Bourbonnais-Rougeau and Rondeau-Poissant began in December of last year and ended in May. Rondeau-Poissant stopped working on the case that same month, and that's also when Bourbonnais-Rougeau first talked to her supervisor about the relationship, after a member of the defence team alleged a possible conflict of interest. Bourbonnais-Rougeau told her supervisor in late May that any suggestion of an intimate relationship with Rondeau-Poissant was false, and that they had a friendship that involved having lunch occasionally and nothing more. But her story soon changed. In a June 4 note to her supervisor, Bourbonnais-Rougeau confessed she had intimate relations with Rondeau-Poissant on two occasions during lunch hours in December 2024, admitting "it wasn't the best idea of the century." It was only in a revised version of that note sent the following day that Bourbonnais-Rougeau revealed the intimate relationship continued beyond December "Mr. Poissant and I have never been a couple, nor have we had a relationship that went beyond friendship," Bourbonnais-Rougeau began in the note. "I must, however, inform you that during occasional dinners, there have been a few occasions when we have had physical encounters, notably in December and later in 2025," she continued. "I am aware that I found myself in a conflict of interest situation, and I acknowledge that this situation was not disclosed in a timely manner," she said. In minutes from a meeting held with her supervisors on June 11, Bourbonnais-Rougeau explained why she initially lied about the nature of the relationship. "I'm human. I panicked. I wasn't comfortable with that, but it wasn't done in a malicious way," Bourbonnais-Rougeau said at the meeting. CBC reached out to Rondeau-Poissant for comment but didn't hear back in time for publication. Case could be thrown out The revelation has put the future of the entire case in doubt, with the defence lawyers now preparing arguments for a request to have the case dismissed. During the duration of the relationship, there were several pre-trial hearings, including discussions of a possible plea agreement and a request to exclude evidence, with both lawyers in attendance along with several other lawyers from both legal teams. In her note to supervisors, Bourbonnais-Rougeau insisted the relationship didn't affect the case. "Despite our personal circumstances, we never, ever had any inappropriate discussions about the case. I never obtained or shared any privileged information," Bourbonnais-Rougeau said. One of the documents filed in court this week outlines the prosecution's position on the request for a stay of proceedings. "It is clear that neither Alice Bourbonnais-Rougeau nor Mathieu Rondeau-Poissant have engaged in any conduct likely to jeopardize the fairness of the proceedings," the prosecution insisted. "Given the fact that both lawyers are no longer involved in the case, there is no risk of harm to the integrity of justice," the document continued, noting that no evidence has been presented suggesting any exchange of privileged information. Defence lawyers in the case contacted by CBC refused to comment. They'll make arguments in the request for a stay of proceedings at a hearing next month. The Quebec Crown prosecutor's office, the Directeur des poursuites criminelles et pénales (DPCP), also refused to comment on the case, other than to say Bourbonnais-Rougeau is still a part of the Bureau de la grande criminalité et des affaires spéciales, but no longer assigned to this case. Appealing previous drunk-driving conviction This is not the first time Bourbonnais-Rougeau has made headlines for questionable conduct. In 2023, she was found guilty of drunk driving and leaving the scene of an accident after she hit another vehicle while parking her car. When a witness called police, Bourbonnais-Rougeau took refuge in her apartment, telling responding officers she was a Crown prosecutor and refusing to allow them to enter until they produced a search warrant. She appealed her conviction in Superior Court but lost the appeal last fall. She's now appealing that decision before the Quebec Court of Appeal. If the conviction is upheld, it could lead to disciplinary proceedings with the Quebec Bar, which has the power to disbar lawyers convicted of a crime.
CBC
2 hours ago
- CBC
Montreal drug case threatened after prosecutor admits to relationship with defence lawyer
Social Sharing A criminal case against an alleged drug trafficking network operating in Quebec could be derailed after one of the Crown prosecutors on the case admitted to having a physical relationship with a member of the defence team while pre-trial hearings were underway. The admission, initially reported in La Presse, is confirmed in court documents entered into evidence earlier this week. The documents reveal prosecutor Alice Bourbonnais-Rougeau initially lied to her supervisors about having an intimate relationship with defence lawyer Mathieu Rondeau-Poissant, before finally admitting to it. The two lawyers were part of opposing legal teams in a case against eight men accused of operating an online cannabis trafficking network alleged to have ties to organized crime. Bourbonnais-Rougeau is part of a special team of prosecutors in Montreal that deals with complex cases, the Bureau de la grande criminalité et des affaires spéciales. Rondeau-Poissant represented one of the accused, David Keith Bishop. Provincial police say the network used fraudulently obtained Health Canada medical certificates to produce and sell cannabis online, involving 70,000 transactions totalling $15 million. Bourbonnais-Rougeau and Rondeau-Poissant are no longer working on the case, but defence lawyers have filed a request to halt proceedings, alleging the relationship was a conflict of interest and that the two may have exchanged privileged information. Relationship 'not the best idea of the century' The eight accused were arrested in January 2024, and several pre-trial hearings have been held since. Court documents show the relationship between Bourbonnais-Rougeau and Rondeau-Poissant began in December of last year and ended in May. Rondeau-Poissant stopped working on the case that same month, and that's also when Bourbonnais-Rougeau first talked to her supervisor about the relationship, after a member of the defence team alleged a possible conflict of interest. Bourbonnais-Rougeau told her supervisor in late May that any suggestion of an intimate relationship with Rondeau-Poissant was false, and that they had a friendship that involved having lunch occasionally and nothing more. But her story soon changed. In a June 4 note to her supervisor, Bourbonnais-Rougeau confessed she had intimate relations with Rondeau-Poissant on two occasions during lunch hours in December 2024, admitting "it wasn't the best idea of the century." It was only in a revised version of that note sent the following day that Bourbonnais-Rougeau revealed the intimate relationship continued beyond December "Mr. Poissant and I have never been a couple, nor have we had a relationship that went beyond friendship," Bourbonnais-Rougeau began in the note. "I must, however, inform you that during occasional dinners, there have been a few occasions when we have had physical encounters, notably in December and later in 2025," she continued. "I am aware that I found myself in a conflict of interest situation, and I acknowledge that this situation was not disclosed in a timely manner," she said. In minutes from a meeting held with her supervisors on June 11, Bourbonnais-Rougeau explained why she initially lied about the nature of the relationship. "I'm human. I panicked. I wasn't comfortable with that, but it wasn't done in a malicious way," Bourbonnais-Rougeau said at the meeting. CBC reached out to Rondeau-Poissant for comment but didn't hear back in time for publication. Case could be thrown out The revelation has put the future of the entire case in doubt, with the defence lawyers now preparing arguments for a request to have the case dismissed. During the duration of the relationship, there were several pre-trial hearings, including discussions of a possible plea agreement and a request to exclude evidence, with both lawyers in attendance along with several other lawyers from both legal teams. In her note to supervisors, Bourbonnais-Rougeau insisted the relationship didn't affect the case. "Despite our personal circumstances, we never, ever had any inappropriate discussions about the case. I never obtained or shared any privileged information," Bourbonnais-Rougeau said. One of the documents filed in court this week outlines the prosecution's position on the request for a stay of proceedings. "It is clear that neither Alice Bourbonnais-Rougeau nor Mathieu Rondeau-Poissant have engaged in any conduct likely to jeopardize the fairness of the proceedings," the prosecution insisted. "Given the fact that both lawyers are no longer involved in the case, there is no risk of harm to the integrity of justice," the document continued, noting that no evidence has been presented suggesting any exchange of privileged information. Defence lawyers in the case contacted by CBC refused to comment. They'll make arguments in the request for a stay of proceedings at a hearing next month. The Quebec Crown prosecutor's office, the Directeur des poursuites criminelles et pénales (DPCP), also refused to comment on the case, other than to say Bourbonnais-Rougeau is still a part of the Bureau de la grande criminalité et des affaires spéciales, but no longer assigned to this case. Appealing previous drunk-driving conviction This is not the first time Bourbonnais-Rougeau has made headlines for questionable conduct. In 2023, she was found guilty of drunk driving and leaving the scene of an accident after she hit another vehicle while parking her car. When a witness called police, Bourbonnais-Rougeau took refuge in her apartment, telling responding officers she was a Crown prosecutor and refusing to allow them to enter until they produced a search warrant. She appealed her conviction in Superior Court but lost the appeal last fall. She's now appealing that decision before the Quebec Court of Appeal. If the conviction is upheld, it could lead to disciplinary proceedings with the Quebec Bar, which has the power to disbar lawyers convicted of a crime.
Malay Mail
2 hours ago
- Malay Mail
Police smash international drug syndicate spanning KL to Johor, with RM2.7m in drugs and assets seized
MUAR, Aug 1 — Police have crippled an international drug trafficking syndicate operating a nationwide network and smuggling drugs via sea routes after arresting 10 suspects and seizing around RM2.7 million worth of drugs and assets. Bukit Aman Narcotics Criminal Investigation Department (NCID) director Datuk Hussein Omar Khan said the success of the arrest was the result of simultaneous raids in Muar and Batu Pahat, as well as Cheras in Kuala Lumpur, between 2pm and 5pm on July 21. 'In the raids, ten suspects, aged between 29 and 70, were arrested.' 'The raiding team also seized 61.3 kilogrammes (kg) of methamphetamine and 51.3 grammes (g) of ecstasy pills worth RM2 million,' he told reporters at the Muar district police headquarters here today. In addition to narcotics, police also seized several vehicles, cash, bags and luxury watches worth RM725,655, bringing the total estimated value of the drugs and assets seized and confiscated to RM2.7 million. Also present were Hussein's deputy director Mat Zani @ Mohd Salahuddin Che Ali and Muar police chief Raiz Mukhliz Azman Aziz. Hussein said the syndicate had been active since last October, using terrace houses as drug storage locations before marketing them to the international market via sea routes using boats. He said the syndicate involves several independent groups that store the drugs in the Klang Valley before distributing them to Johor. Hussein said the syndicate's activity was uncovered after police stopped a luxury car in Parit Pulai in Parit Jawa here and arrested a man where police found 51 green, blue and red plastic packages suspected to contain methamphetamine weighing approximately 51kg. 'Police then conducted follow-up raids in the house and around the Parit Pulai area before a married couple was arrested. Five more suspects, including a foreigner, were arrested in Parit Bakar here. 'Police also arrested a male suspect in Batu Pahat who we believed was the syndicate leader, while the last suspect was arrested at a house in Cheras,' he said, adding that investigators also found 17 plastic packets containing methamphetamine weighing 10kg and 105 ecstasy pills weighing an estimated 51g. Hussein said the syndicate members were receiving wages ranging from RM3,000 to RM15,000 a month, while six of the suspects were positive for ketamine, methamphetamine and marijuana abuse during drug screening. He said three of the suspects had previous police records related to firearms and drug activities. Over the years, Johor has been a favourite destination for illicit drug syndicates that take advantage of the state's many sea routes and porous border.
