Man accused of selling drugs from camper in Lower Sackville to unhoused people: RCMP

LOWER SACKVILLE, N.S. — A 56-year-old Lower Sackville man appeared in court Friday to answer to charges stemming from an investigation into the sale of drugs to unhoused people in the area.

In December, the Halifax District RCMP’s Community Action Response Team was informed of a man trafficking drugs to vulnerable individuals, police said in a news release.

The RCMP learned the man “was selling drugs in exchange for cash or bartered items, such as gift cards, from a camper he had parked on public property on Cobequid (Road).”

As police were executing a search warrant on the camper, the accused arrived in a Ford pickup truck and was arrested.

Police said a search of both seized vehicles uncovered cocaine, suspected opioids, a conducted energy weapon, a crossbow, a replica .357-calibre revolver, a replica break-barrel air rifle, ammunition, sensory irritant, cash, gift cards and unstamped tobacco.

The accused was expected to appear in a Halifax provincial courtroom Friday to face charges that included:

• Possession of cocaine for the purpose of trafficking;
• Possession of property obtained by crime;
• Two counts of possession of a prohibited weapon knowing its possession is unauthorized;
• Possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose;
• Possession of a weapon obtained by the commission of an offence.

“It’s alarming that the accused targeted vulnerable unhoused people,” Inspector Cory Bushell, Halifax District RCMP East operations officer, in the release. “Our officers will continue to work with partners to help promote the safety of people experiencing homelessness in this area.”