Permanent resident who smuggled $35M worth of opium into Canada gets 16 years

https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/toronto-permanent-resident-opium-smuggler

A Kurdish immigrant convicted of smuggling $35 million worth of opium into Canada has been sentenced to 16 years in prison and is at risk of being deported to Iran for his crimes.

Sohrab Hanareh-Mafarani, 53, a permanent resident of Canada who came here in 2010, was found guilty in Ontario’s Superior Court of Justice of importing opium, possession of opium for the purpose of trafficking, conspiracy to import opium and conspiracy to possess opium for the purpose of trafficking.

“Mr. Hanareh-Mafarani, along with several other individuals, was involved in the shipment of over 500 kilograms of opium that police discovered hidden in a shipping container sent to Canada from Pakistan,” Justice Heather McArthur wrote in a recent decision.

After the police covertly seized the opium, violence ensued. Mr. Hanareh-Mafarani forcibly confined and assaulted one of his co-conspirators, Hassan Talebi. Mr. Hanareh-Mafarani’s brother was also abducted in Iran by others involved in the conspiracy. He has not been seen since.”

After he was arrested, police searched Hanareh-Mafarani’s cellphone.

“They located a video clip sent to him sometime in July 2020,” the judge wrote in her March 10 decision. “In the video, his brother, Fakhradin, can be seen in chains, with facial injuries.” Continue…