THUNDER BAY -- Convicted Thunder Bay drug trafficker John Harry Tsekouras is out of custody on bail as he seeks leave to appeal his case to the Supreme Court of Canada.
The 43-year-old man was arrested in 2012 after a police joint forces undercover operation called Project Dolphin. Police called him the kingpin of a criminal organization trafficking in cocaine and marijuana.
In 2015 he was sentenced to over 11 years in prison, less two years credit, but was released on bail pending an appeal to the Ontario Court of Appeal.
The grounds for the appeal included, among other reasons, the claim that the Charter of Rights and Freedoms was violated with the police seizure of his Blackberry—a critical part of the Crown's case—without a warrant.
Last month, the Court of Appeal upheld the lower court's verdict despite what it called "the investigative missteps" that were made in the collection of evidence.
On May 4, the same court granted Tsekouras bail pending a decision by the Supreme Court whether to hear an appeal.
The court has received notice of the application for leave to appeal, but details of the application are not available as yet.
