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A Surrey man who was part of a dial-a-dope operation selling fentanyl on the North Shore has been handed an 18-month conditional sentence and placed under house arrest for six months.
Gurpinder Vicky Johal, 27, was handed the sentence to be served in the community after pleading guilty March 7 to possessing fentanyl for the purpose of trafficking in North Vancouver on July 27, 2021.
The drug dealing first came to light while North Vancouver RCMP were conducting surveillance on a rooming house at 462 East 11th St. because of that address’s association to previous drug activity, said Crown counsel Lisa Dumbrell. At 11 a.m., police saw a white Jetta driven by Johal approach the area, stop briefly and interact with someone who then walked away.
Police then started surveillance on the car, following it around the North Shore through several brief stops including some in West Vancouver.
Just after 11 a.m., police watched the Jetta stop on Keith Road near Fullerton, where a man left a nearby address and got into the rear passenger seat of the car. One minute later, the man left the car, the prosecutor said.
Surveillance continued until the Jetta went back to the alley behind a house on East 11th Street where a man appeared to be waiting, also getting into the back seat of the car and leaving a minute later.
Police eventually moved in on the car when the drug dealers went through the Tim Horton’s drive-through at 2177 Dollarton Hwy, blocking the exit and arresting Johal and a second man in the car, who had dropped a bag of drugs on the floor of the car, said Dumbrell. Both men were taken back to the detachment and the car was towed and searched.
Inside the car, police found a car rental agreement from Enterprise, along with cell phones, about $1,000 in cash, a baton and bags of drugs.
The drugs included 13 baggies of fentanyl benzodiazepine with a total weight of 1.6 grams, six baggies of fentanyl with a weight of .6 grams, five baggies of fentanyl benzodiazepine with a weight of 1.2 grams and 48 bags of cocaine with a weight of 15.4 grams, said the Crown. The drugs were estimated to have a value of about $2,100.
Dumbrell said the fact the pair were dealing fentanyl is an aggravating factor in the case. “Your honour is well aware of the catastrophic impact that has had on many in our community,” she said. Dumbrell described the dial-a-dope operation as “on the sophisticated side,” adding the car rental agreement indicated a plan to be involved for some time.
As the driver, Johal played a secondary role in the drug dealing, she added.
A second man arrested in the case has not yet been sentenced.
Defence lawyer Conor Muldoon said Johal has no mental health or addiction issues but does have ADHD which likely led to some of his bad decision-making.
He added Johal was only 25 at the time of the offence.
Judge Robert Hamilton placed Johal on house arrest for the first six months of his 18-month conditional sentence, with exceptions for medical care, work and school. He must also complete 75 hours of community work service. Johal was also banned from possessing firearms for 10 years.
