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Meth seizure at Coutts border crossing on July 28, 2019. (Supplied by Canada Border Services Agency)

11-year sentence for smuggling 50 kg of meth at Coutts border

Feb 27, 2021 | 2:49 PM

LETHBRIDGE, AB – A Calgary man found guilty of trying to import 50 kilograms of meth across the Coutts border has learned his fate.

In Lethbridge Provincial Court Friday, the judge sentenced Asif Mir, 42, to 11 years in prison.

Justice Gregory Maxwell ordered a sentence of 11 years for the charge of importing methamphetamine for the purpose of trafficking and eight years for possession of methamphetamine for the purpose of trafficking. Both sentences will run concurrently, meaning that Mir will spend 11 years behind bars.

He said that sentences for crimes related to meth are treated the same as cocaine as both take a significant and tragic toll on society, adding that addiction to these substances can destroy people, their families, careers, and harm society as a whole.

The judge considered the fact that Mir has no prior criminal record as a mitigating factor, but the wholesale quantity of drugs was an aggravating one.

While the defense had tried to argue that Mir was only a courier, the judge was of the position that couriers are an “integral part” of any drug operation, especially one that spans international borders.

The Crown had asked for 12-15 years for importation and eight-to-10 years for possession.

“It’s in the range [of what the crown had asked for] so that makes it an appropriate sentence from our point of view,” says Crown Prosecutor Kent Brown. “The judge has obviously given careful consideration to the cases – it’s a really challenging thing for a judge to do when it comes to sentencing – he has all of these factors he has to try to put into play. I think he did a very good job at that.”

Brown says meth is an “insidious drug” and Mir was found guilty of smuggling “a truly massive” importation. Depending on how it is packaged and sold, this quantity is estimated to have a street value of anywhere between $1.3 million and $5 million.

At the time of the offense, this was the largest seizure of meth at the Coutts border.

While the defense, Allan Fay, did agree with some of the comments made by the crown, he offered a different perspective on Mir’s character as a person.

He said Mir is a “family man” and a “working man”, being the sole breadwinner for his wife and two children.

Mir has no prior record, and according to his attorney, lived an “exemplary” life up until this point.

Fay pointed out other drug smuggling cases and how many of the people involved were blatantly aware of the nature of the substances and often had a higher level of sophistication with how the drugs were concealed.

These were all factors that Justice Maxwell had taken into consideration.

It was stated by the defense that Mir merely had a “lapse in judgment” and that there was no evidence that he would re-offend upon release.

In the end, Fay suggested that a combined sentence of eight years would be more appropriate.

Prior to the judge’s sentencing decision, Mir stood up in court to make a brief statement. He reiterated his position that he would “never do this kind of thing” and that his family relies on his income to make ends meet.

At the same time, Mir said he would respect whatever decision was made.

The judge ruled that Mir will serve his sentence at Drumheller Institution as it is closer to his family in Calgary.

In addition to time in prison, Mir will have a firearms prohibition for 10 years after his release, must submit a DNA sample, and will forfeit all items seized during the investigation to be destroyed.