Drug dealer sentenced to prison

A Blackfalds drug dealer who socked away hundreds of thousands in cash and built up a mini-arsenal of weapons, including an AK-47 assault rifle, was sentenced to five and a half years in federal prison on Friday.

Shane Clifford White, 24, pleaded guilty in Red Deer provincial court to trafficking cocaine and marijuana, possession of restricted weapons, which included a sawed-off shotgun and a stolen .357 Ruger handgun, possession of the proceeds of crime, including about $300,000 in cash, and possession of stolen property.

White, who was born and raised in Red Deer and had no prior criminal record, told provincial court Judge Thomas Schollie that he regretted turning to crime.

“I just kind of got mixed up with the wrong lifestyle there,” said White. “I’ve got a lot of remorse, like, for my family and everybody, you know.”

White said he was not brought up to do the things he did and his family now looks down on him.

“I just want to redeem myself and have another chance to live a normal life.”

His Calgary lawyer Patrick Fagan said White was raised in a good family, was an avid hockey and soccer player and boxer, but fell in with the wrong crowd.

“They were the wrong friends. He was ultimately seduced by the lure of the lifestyle,” he said, adding he chose a path to easy money.

“It was the wrong path. It was the wrong choice.”

Federal Crown prosecutor Dave Inglis said White’s legal troubles began when he was pulled over in his rental vehicle on Hwy 2 near Olds in December 2006. Despite having a number of air fresheners in the vehicle, the police officer detected the faint odour of marijuana.

A search of the trunk turned up a hockey bag containing $59,960 in cash, bundled together in $2,000 increments enclosed in bank deposit envelopes.

When his Kentwood residence was searched, RCMP turned up 2.7 kg of marijuana, 162 grams of crack cocaine and 87 grams of powder cocaine.

A personal safe was opened and $182,090 in cash found inside, again divided among bank deposit envelopes containing $2,000 each.

RCMP investigators pulled tax records to discover that White, who is a concrete finisher by trade, had reported only $55,000 in income between 2001 and 2005.

White was awaiting trial on various charges when the RCMP emergency response team and officers from the Red Deer and Calgary drug units raided his Rolling Hills Ridge residence in Blackfalds last July and uncovered a large amount of drugs and the cache of “loaded, illicit, serious, nasty weapons.”

Inglis said about 11.3 kg of pre-packaged marijuana was seized, along with 700 grams of cocaine and 450 grams of crack cocaine.

Bundles of cash in ziplock bags, cellphones, a money counter, vacuum-sealing equipment, a computer and a number of “score sheets” tallying drug debts were also recovered.

In all, about $300,000 in cash was seized by police. The value of the drugs was not available, but “it was substantial to say the least,” he said.

Inglis asked the judge for a forfeiture order for all the property seized except for personal items; $25,000, which is to go to White’s lawyer; and a 2007 GMC Sierra pickup belonging to a Sylvan Lake man.

In a joint submission, the Crown and defence asked for a five-and-a-half-year sentence. White, who was due to go to trial in January, will get credit for nine months in custody on the usual two days-for-one deal. He was also given a 10-year weapons prohibition and must provide a DNA sample to a national database.

Contact Paul Cowley at

pcowley@reddeeradvocate.com