A southern Ontario man, nabbed with 1.96 kilograms of cocaine during a Festive RIDE check near Wawa five years ago, pleaded guilty to dealing drugs on Thursday.
Isaac Oppong was convicted of three counts of possession for the purpose of trafficking, as well as a single count of obstructing police when he appeared in a Sault Ste. Marie courtroom.
In addition to the cocaine, he had 412 grams of methamphetamine and 125 grams of fentanyl, Superior Court Justice Michael Varpio heard.
Oppong, 27, of Brampton, also pleaded guilty to two charges stemming from an incident four years ago in Thunder Bay.
Officers with the Superior East detachment of the Ontario Provincial Police were conducting the RIDE program on Dec. 7, 2019.
When one of the cops approached the vehicle, the officer noticed Oppong lying on the back seat and asked the driver to pull over to the side of the road.
The officer was going to charge the passenger under the Highway Traffic Act for not wearing a seat belt, federal prosecutor Joe Chapman said.
Oppong's identification was fake, and the driver couldn't provide any information about his passenger, explaining he was just giving the man a ride.
After learning Oppong's name, the cop arrested the accused for obstructing police.
When the officer searched the car, he found the drugs.
The total value of the narcotics was $100,000 to $130,000, Chapman told the court.
Oppong was also convicted of possessing fentanyl for the purpose of trafficking and resisting police in Thunder Bay on Jan. 7, 2021.
Officers with the city's police service obtained a warrant to search a residence where the accused was trafficking drugs.
When officers entered the home, they located Oppong in the basement, Chapman said.
He was standing behind a coffee table, where there was as a digital scale with dust from fentanyl on it.
A combative Oppong struggled with police, kicking and stomping towards a constable.
Officers located a shopping bag with $40,000 cash, 4.7 grams of fentanyl valued at $6,350, four cell phones and packaging material
Defence lawyer Yonatan Eshtu and the Crown asked that sentencing be adjourned so that a pre-sentence report can be prepared.
They will return to court on March 26 to set that date.