A man accused of possessing methamphetamine for the purposes of trafficking pled guilty to the lesser charge of simple possession, resulting from an incident where police found more than a half-ounce of the drug in his vehicle’s trunk.
Lawrence Vandermeulen received a 15-day sentence as part of a joint submission at his Thursday appearance in Medicine Hat Provincial Court.
According to the agreed statement of facts, police conducted a traffic stop on a Pontiac Montana minivan on March 23, because its hatch was open and two spare tires fell out.
They found 14.9 grams of meth and paraphernalia in the trunk.
The Crown said Vandermeulen was convicted of possession in 2002, for which he was charged a $1,800 fine.
In addition to the criminal charge, Vandermeulen received several traffic tickets, but only one for carrying an insecure load was pursued by the Crown.
He was fined $465 for that, but was given until Feb. 3 to pay it, as he’s currently incapacitated so will be unable to go back to work immediately after his release from jail.
