A man is denying the B.C.'s civil forfeiture director's claim that his car is a proceed of crime.
In a response filed on June 23, counsel for Andrew James Schooley says he was wrongfully arrested and his vehicle wrongly and unjustly taken from him on Dec. 22, 2022.
The director is seeking forfeiture of Schooley's 2019 Subaru WRX, alleging it was being used to run a dial-a-dope drug trafficking operation in Prince George. In a notice of claim, the director goes on to itemize significant quantities of fentanyl, methamphetamine and cocaine RCMP allegedly uncovered from the car and from a home police also subsequently searched.
A loaded handgun, stun gun, more than $5,000 in cash and drug trafficking paraphernalia were also uncovered, according to the director.
In the response, Schooley "specifically denies" being in possession of any of the items and states he was one of several occupants of the home. Schooley has also "never been charged with any Criminal activity stemming from his unlawful arrest and unlawful search on December 22, 2022."
Charge approval typically takes a year from the date of an arrest in such cases to give police time to have the substances tested and verified.
Court records show Schooley, who also goes by James Andrew Schooley, has a criminal record for drug and gun related offences and continues to face drug-related charges from alleged August 2020 and May 2022 incidents.
For a conviction in a criminal matter, Crown must prove its case beyond reasonable doubt. In contrast. civil forfeitures are considered civil matters, and so the threshold is a less-stringent balance of probabilities.
