One of the men arrested in a gang raid two years ago has been sentenced to four and a half years in prison and will not be allowed to own firearms for at least 20 years after his release.
James Willert of Red Deer was among a group of six men arrested by RCMP who raided three homes in Sylvan Lake and Red Deer.
Willert, 26 at the time of his arrest, was charged with numerous criminal offences, including production of a controlled substance, possession of controlled substances, possession for trafficking, possession of the proceeds of crime exceeding $5,000, possession of a firearm with ammunition, possession of a restricted weapon, unsafe storage of a firearm and possession of a weapon without a permit.
Willert had planned to go to trial and was supposed to be arraigned in Red Deer Court of Queen’s Bench on Monday.
However, a plea agreement was reached beforehand and the global sentence passed.
In a press conference after the raid, RCMP Supt. Brian Simpson said all six suspects arrested were part of a Red Deer gang that had been under investigation in the previous months.