The accused, a 65-year-old woman, was found guilty by a jury of importing 1.522 kilograms of cocaine.
Following numerous adjournments and failures to appear, the court found the accused had absconded and proceeded with sentencing in her absence pursuant to s. 475(1)(a) of the Criminal Code.
The court weighed the aggravating factors of the quantity of cocaine and the nature of the offence against mitigating factors including the accused's age, significant health issues, and personal tragedies.
The court imposed a sentence of 3.5 years, reduced by 12 months for personal circumstances and 24 days for pre-sentence custody, resulting in a net sentence of 2 years and 156 days incarceration.
