By CHAT News Today

Guilty pleas entered in connection with February drug bust

Mar 21, 2017 | 10:22 AM

MEDICINE HAT, AB — One of the three men arrested in a pair of drug seizures last month has entered guilty pleas on several charges.

Aaron Bodnaruk, 31, pleaded guilty to three counts of possession of substance and one count of unauthorized possession of a prohibited weapon in connection with an Alberta Law Enforcement Response Team (ALERT) investigation on Feb. 17.

ALERT, along with members of the Medicine Hat Police Service, seized 86 fentanyl pills, 29 Oxycodone pills, 2.5 litres of GHB, 16 grams of cocaine, 1.5 grams of methamphetamine, a gram of heroin and $5,120 cash proceeds of crime from a hotel room in the city’s northwest.

Bodnaruk, who is from Red Deer, will be sentenced on the charges on March 28. Bodnaruk will also speak to three counts of possession of a controlled substance, one count of possession of a weapon dangerous to the public and one count of possession of stolen property during his next appearance.

Bodnaruk’s arrest was made during an attempt by ALERT to disrupt street level dealers in the southeast region. MacKenzie Osgood, 19, and Taylor Weiss-Linder, 20, were both arrested on Feb. 18 on drug and weapons charges in a similar ALERT investigation. Weiss-Linder makes his next court appearance on March 23 for a bail hearing, while Osgood is scheduled to enter a plea on March 30.

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Trial set for alleged arson

A 61-year-old man charged with arson in connection with with a grass fire last month will go to trial in provincial court this summer.

Wesley Vanbocquestal, 61, was arrested on Feb. 18 after Medicine Hat police and firefighters responded to a grass fire in an open field adjacent to the Gas City Campground and the Clarion Hotel.

Vanbocquestal was charged with arson, possession of incendiary material, breach of recognizance and three counts of breach of probation.

The trial is scheduled to begin July 7.