Christmas is approaching. Apparently Santa is not the only one capable of flight from our rooftops during this festive season.
I present to you some interesting bedtime reading for the night before Christmas from an article in the Toronto Sun by Cheryl Chan, dated 13 December, 2023:
“Canadian authorities are seeking the help of Interpol to find a Surrey truck driver who fled to India after he was found guilty of smuggling cocaine through a U.S.-Canada border crossing…
Mehmi was charged with importation of a controlled substance and possession for the purpose of trafficking. On Sept. 6, 2022, he was found guilty of both charges…
But a month later, on Oct. 11, before he could be sentenced, Mehmi boarded a flight from Vancouver to New Delhi. He failed to show up at his sentencing hearing scheduled for Jan. 9, 2023…
On Nov. 16, a provincial court judge in Surrey sentenced Mehmi in absentia to 15 years’ imprisonment. He also received a lifetime ban on firearms and restricted and prohibited weapons”.
Crossing over an international border into our country with over eighty kilos of cocaine worth north of three million on the street, stashed in a tractor trailer rig while no doubt holding a hot cup of Tim’s in one hand and a cell phone in the other with his feet up on the dash, seems to get you immediate bail! I see this type of driver all the time here in Ontario.
This, or course, is the liberal approach to public safety in Canada these days. Do you think he would be out on bail and able to flee the country if he had been apprehended crossing the border the other way? Not a chance. But this is Canada were everyone, with the exception of legal firearms owners, has the absolute right to bail even in the most heinous crimes, or so it would appear.
Interestingly, the above news report does not go into detail about why the court would issue a lifetime ban on firearms and restricted and prohibited weapons, but let me guess, could it be that in the heat of his latest project, Mr. Mehmi forgot to renew his expired PAL? Nor did they seem to ask him for his passport while awaiting his court sentencing date, or, did the Ghost of Christmas Present, pick him up a new one at Staples? Perhaps the RCMP even drove him to the airport to catch his flight!
According to the organizations that represent firearms owners here in the Great White North, forgetting to renew your license can surely land you in jail under the provisions of Bill C-21, with the accompanying loss of all your firearms. So, as the saying goes at this time of year; “you better watch out…I’m telling you why…”, Justin is watching.
So this Christmas Eve I am going to leave a big plate of cookies and warm milk by the fireplace, just in case Justin drops down the chimney to check the expiry date on my PAL and to make sure my firearms are stored legally or not.
Merry Christmas, everyone!