Drug dealer jailed after fleeing Nanaimo luxury car crash with two bricks of cocaine

The offender removed himself from the wreck, as a Good Samaritan checked on him.

“He offers that witness $5,000, doesn’t say what it’s for, but I think the implication is ‘Don’t call the police.’ And then (Harris) starts running away, including through backyards, and a number of civilians are trailing after him,” McFadgen told the contested day-long provincial court sentencing hearing.

Holding what turned out to be two bricks of high-purity cocaine totalling two kilograms, Harris ran through backyards on Estevan and Departure Bay roads with emergency responder sirens blaring.

Several civilians tracked Harris’ movements through multiple properties, while a Nanaimo Mountie at Brooks Landing spotted the driver.

“Mr. Harris appeared to be out of breath and carrying two white rectangular items in his hand,” McFadgen said.

The officer quickly realized the gravity of what Harris was possessing.

A Nanaimo RCMP drug expert estimated the cocaine had a street value of upwards of $140,000.

Bear spray was later found in the badly damaged Jaguar.

Stating Harris had a strong prior gainful work history, McFadgen said the amount of drugs from the car wreck incident, followed by continued drug trafficking two years later, demonstrates high moral culpability.

“The amount of money and drugs involved, the decision to arm himself with a loaded gun are not things that can be accounted for by claims of an addiction – this is somebody driving around in a new Jaguar…this is someone who’s doing this just for the luxury lifestyle.”

McFadgen noted Harris’ guilty pleas were made late in the judicial process, cancelling an imminent trial.

Second offence/loaded handgun
While Harris was out on pretrial release, he was the passenger of his Dodge Ram truck during a March 2024 traffic stop on Nanaimo’s Nicol St.

While walking toward the truck, an RCMP officer noticed Harris twisting his seat and reaching toward the back seat, drawing suspicion.

Open liquor was spotted in the back seat, followed by the discovery of a Louis Vuitton handbag.

The bag contained a loaded/restricted handgun, 29 grams (roughly one ounce) of methamphetamine, and cash.

Other drug paraphernalia was seized, as was a machete and three throwing axes stored elsewhere in the truck.

Harris’ cell phone was confiscated and searched, uncovering texts demonstrating “mid-to-high level trafficking,” McFadgen stated.

Images in Harris’ phone glorified his lifestyle, showing off bricks of cocaine and stacks of cash.

Messages from Harris indicated he was profiting $1,500 a week from his trafficking, but that he also had severe drug-related debts.

Five days before the traffic stop, Harris declared his affinity for guns during an exchange with a contact described as a colleague.

“I’m not tough, I don’t fight people, I just shoot them,” Harris declared.

Text exchanges indicated Harris had several “workers” selling inventory on his behalf.

McFadgen lobbied for a six-year jail sentence.

With the defendant attending the proceedings from the Surrey Pretrial Services Centre, defence attorney Jordan Allingham argued four-and-a-half years behind bars was more suitable.

Focusing on Harris’ personal circumstances, Allingham noted his client’s only other criminal conviction was a property offence leading to a non-custodial sentence in Alberta more than 20 years ago.

While Harris had a relatively stable childhood and a supportive family, Allingham said his client stopped using cocaine as a young man and flourished professionally in the cell phone industry and running his own maintenance company.

Life changed for Harris about seven or eight years ago, when he shattered his leg at a Richmond trampoline park.

He was prescribed opioids to help numb the pain.

What followed was a familiar story played out in courtrooms province-wide, including Nanaimo, on countless occasions.

“He’s cut off his prescription, turns to street drugs to kill the pain, and this becomes a full-blown addiction, that reverted to cocaine and Percocet,” Allingham outlined.

A deeply addicted Harris couldn’t keep his business afloat, which went bankrupt, while his wife left him, taking their son with her.

Telling the court Harris is embarrassed and remorseful, Allingham said all facets of his clients’ life spiralled completely out of control.

“This is confirmed by text messages you read from his phone, where he’s getting threats for the money that he owed. At one point, it was $70,000,” Allingham said.

The defence attorney took exception with assertions his client was living in luxury, noting Harris was portraying wealth, noting the crashed Jaguar was leased.

Harris’ upscale lifestyle was all a show.

“It’s a lot of image, but not a lot to back it up,” Allingham said.

Harris benefits from strong family support and has clear plans to be a productive member of society once more, Allingham said.

Harris addressed the court during an extended address via the video feed, stating he’s sober and has much more insight into his offending.

He reported going to in-custody drug counselling sessions and imploring young inmates he’s met to stay away from the drug culture.

“I will never be a part of that problem again. I understand that pain. There is no island of happiness in a sea of misery – that’s all that drugs bring. They destroy families, they destroy lives and for that I’m very sorry.”

Harris plans to start a signage business in Richmond upon release, as well as reconnect with his 8-year-old son and one-and-a-half-year-old daughter.

He’s not sure how much time his father has left, who’s living with cancer.

“I beg of you Your Honour to really please come on the lighter side of sentencing so I can get back to my child, get to know my little daughter and get to have lunch in person with my dad,” Harris said.

Judge’s decision

Late on Friday afternoon, judge Karen Whonnock opted for a five-year jail sentence.

She said Harris’ actions were serious, requiring a lengthy sentence.

“Mr. Harris was conducting a high-level drug-trafficking operation in 2022 and this is especially aggravating at sentencing. This was a sophisticated level of operations that required a lot of thought and planning.”

Harris was also handed a lifetime restricted/prohibited weapons ban.

Three other charges against Harris were dropped in exchange for the guilty pleas.

Due to pretrial credit, Harris has roughly four years and three months further to serve at a federal penitentiary to be determined by Correctional Service Canada.

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by Ian Holmes

Drug dealer jailed after fleeing Nanaimo luxury car crash with two bricks of cocaine

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