SASKATOON — Numerous drug trafficking and weapons charges against a 42-year-old man have been stayed, with Abdi Faisal pleading guilty to one lesser charge of possession and being sentenced to time served.
When charges are stayed, the proceedings are stopped and the Crown can potentially revive them within one year, though this rarely happens.
Faisal appeared via CCTV from the Saskatoon Correctional Centre in Saskatoon Provincial Court on June 26. In a joint submission between Crown prosecutor Christina Abbott and defence lawyer Nicole Bree, Faisal pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of possession of cocaine.
Judge Bradley S. Mitchell gave Faisal 266 days credit for time spent in remand, resulting in a sentence of time served. Several trial dates originally scheduled for Sept. 4, Sept. 9, and Dec. 3, and 7-9 were vacated.
All other charges against Faisal were stayed. They included charges of trafficking cocaine, trafficking fentanyl, possession of fentanyl for the purpose of trafficking, possession of methamphetamine, possession of methamphetamine for the purpose of trafficking, and possession of property obtained by crime valued at under $5,000.
Several firearms-related charges were also stayed, including possession of a firearm (a sawed-off Ruger .22-calibre rifle) while prohibited by a court order, possession of a prohibited weapon without a licence, and careless storage of a firearm.
Faisal’s co-accused, 32-year-old Deanna Elsie Masuskapoe, had all charges against her stayed in Saskatoon Provincial Court on June 24.
Arrest and seizure
Faisal and Masuskapoe were arrested in January following an enforcement action by the Saskatoon Police Service Guns and Gangs Unit, with assistance from the Tactical Support Unit and Patrol. The operation took place at a home in the city's west side, in the 1300 block of Idylwyld Drive North, as part of a drug trafficking and firearms investigation.
Police seized a loaded sawed-off Ruger .22-calibre rifle, 98.37 grams of methamphetamine, 43.43 grams of crack cocaine, 30.12 grams of cocaine, 12.39 grams of fentanyl, 12 hydromorphone capsules, and $436 in cash.
