The positions of Crown and defence counsels were far apart when arguments were presented Friday on sentencing for a Quesnel man who was selling illicit party drugs through a website.
Travis James Gaudette, 32, has pleaded guilty to one count each of possessing butylone and methylone for the purpose of trafficking. The so-called "designer drugs" provide effects similar to MDMA and ecstacy.
Gaudette was arrested in June 2013 after Canada Border Services Agency intercepted a package containing 500 grams of butylone, sent from Nanjing, China to Gaudette's home. Gaudette was also caught mailing packages to an undercover officer and a woman in Regina.
In all, RCMP intercepted and seized just over a kilogram of drugs worth an estimated $100,000 to $150,000 once sold. Gaudette's website was subsequently shut down.
Emphasizing the principles of denunciation and deterrence, Crown prosecutor Michelle Wiancko argued for three years in federal prison while defence lawyer Jason LeBlond contended three years probation with a suspended sentence is apt.
LeBlond cited exceptional circumstances in Gaudette's case, noting his client has pleaded guilty, has no previous criminal record and has remained law abiding ever since his arrest. He said Gaudette turned to the venture after injuries suffered in a motor vehicle incident prevented him from returning to work as a roofer.
After shutting down the website following his arrest in June 2013, Gaudette opened up a restaurant in the community of 9,500 people 116 kilometres south of Prince George. Two years later he sold it and is now sells spices and supplies to restaurants.
Gaudette has maintained he was unaware he was breaking the law but also admitted he knew he was "walking into a grey area legally" and failed to contact the RCMP for guidance. "One ought to have known better," LeBlond conceded.
Wiancko countered that Gaudette was a "sophisticated dealer and imported drugs," rather than a lower-level employee or "drug addict who is brought into the operation out of need instead of greed and is not the individual making a profit from the sale of the drugs."
Also playing into the decision by B.C. Supreme Court Justice Marguerite Church is whether she finds Gaudette attempted to smash his cellphone during his arrest. Sentencing was delayed so testimony could be heard from an RCMP officer and from Gaudette on the issue.
Given a chance to speak to the court, Gaudette said he takes full responsibility for his actions, adding he was "stupid and careless."
"Had I known then what I know now, this wouldn't have happened," Gaudette said as he read from a prepared statement.
Church reserved judgment to a later date.
