Canadian Authorities Drop Charges in Major Cartel-Linked Human Trafficking Network ~ Borderland Beat

Ricco King, the alleged leader of the organization, which has ties to both Calgary and Halifax, was one of five people who walked away from their charges. This is the second time in five years that he has escaped international drug import duties.

Last week, federal prosecutors dropped all charges against King, Jarett Mackenzie, 34, Elias Ade, 40, Abdul Akbar, 39, and Kari-Lynn Grant, 53; the alleged leaders and those facing the most serious crimes.

The move came a day before the suspects’ lawyers were due to file an application in Jordan, where they would argue that the charges should be dropped due to unreasonable delay in bringing the case to trial.

At the same time, attorneys fought in federal court for the disclosure of information that the attorney general did not want to turn over due to national security concerns. The disclosure concerned investigative techniques used by the RCMP.

Federal court documents show that the attorney general filed a cease and desist notice on all cases the day after the suspensions were issued, meaning prosecutors would not have to turn over any information the government wanted kept secret.

The Public Prosecution Service of Canada declined to explain the decision to issue the suspensions, but sent CBC News a statement saying the Crown was fulfilling its duty to “continually assess whether, based on the admissible evidence, there is a reasonable prospect of conviction continues to exist.”

“The Public Prosecution Service has ruled that this is no longer the case,” the PPSC wrote.

Mackenzie’s lawyer, Gavin Wolch, praised the Crown for “objectively considering the merits of the prosecution.”

“Like any machine with many moving parts, a prosecution like this is a huge undertaking where if one part fails, the machine could collapse,” Wolch said.

Akbar’s lawyer, Faizan Butt, cited a suspect’s right to full disclosure and the right to timely prosecution as “fundamental principles of justice.”

“The remedies for a breach of these principles, which are set out in the Charter, can often lead to harsh results,” Butt said. “But they are necessary in a democratic society … and serve as procedural guardians of our legal system.”

McNeil says Project Cobra “is undoubtedly one of ALERT’s greatest successes and the impact of this research will be significant.” Coughlan said Operation Cobra didn’t just ‘take the head off the snake’, it ‘took the whole damn snake’.

The investigation resulted in 80 charges against 15 people, including drug trafficking, organized crime, money laundering and firearms offences. Now almost all arrests have been suspended.

Two of Ricco King’s homes, multimillion-dollar mansions in Halifax and Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, were seized by police. Investigators also seized two Lamborghinis, a Porsche, several other luxury vehicles and other assets that were considered at the time the proceeds of organized crime.

Murder connection

Talal Fouani was among those arrested. Just weeks after he was initially charged with organized crime, he and his wife were shot as they sat in their Bentley outside their southwest Calgary home.

Nakita Baron, 31, died from her injuries. Fouani survived.

In 2020, Fouani testified against his former friend and business partner Cem (Jim) Can at an Alberta Securities Commission (ASC) hearing. Can was arrested along with two Hells Angels associates, charged with extortion and kidnapping in connection with a botched stock deal. The charges were later dropped due to concerns about the alleged victim’s credibility.

At the time of Fouani’s plea, charges against his sister and brother were stayed.

A week after Baron was killed, Michael Tyrel Arnold, 34, of Sherwood Park was arrested by Edmonton police and charged with first-degree murder and attempted murder. But police and prosecutors have not publicly linked him to the organized crime case.