Blake Arcand, 57, was sentenced to 11 years after being charged with felony-level possession with intent to distribute. Credit: Unified Police Department of Greater Salt Lake
A Nanaimo man who was caught with 31 kilograms of methamphetamine in Utah last year has been sentenced to 11 years in U.S. federal prison.
Blake Arcand, 57, was sentenced on Nov. 16 to a total of 135 months in prison to be followed by 60 months of supervised release.
On Aug. 16, 2016, Unified Police pulled over Arcand on Interstate near the Salt Lake and Utah counties line. The police department had received a tip from the Department of Homeland Security that a vehicle carrying a large quantity of meth was travelling through Utah on its way to Canada.
The department brought a drug-sniffing dog to search the vehicle. Officers then found 68 pounds (31 kilograms) of meth in a large suitcase.
Arcand, who was driving the vehicle, was arrested and booked into the Salt Lake County Jail on state charges. He was ultimately charged in U.S. District Court with felony-level possession with intent to distribute. According to police, Arcand has a history of smuggling narcotics into Canada from the U.S.
Unified police said in August 2016 that this was the largest meth bust in Utah’s history. The street value of the meth that was seized from Arcand was over $2 million USD.
The Unified Police Department of Greater Salt Lake seized 31 kilograms of meth from a suitcase after they pulled over a car being driven by Blake Arcand of Nanaimo. (Unified Police Department of Greater Salt Lake).
The Unified Police Department of Greater Salt Lake seized 31 kilograms of meth from a suitcase after they pulled over a car being driven by Blake Arcand of Nanaimo. (Unified Police Department of Greater Salt Lake).
The Unified Police Department of Greater Salt Lake seized 31 kilograms of meth from a suitcase after they pulled over a car being driven by Blake Arcand of Nanaimo. (Unified Police Department of Greater Salt Lake).
The Unified Police Department of Greater Salt Lake seized 31 kilograms of meth from a suitcase after they pulled over a car being driven by Blake Arcand of Nanaimo. (Unified Police Department of Greater Salt Lake).
The Unified Police Department of Greater Salt Lake seized 31 kilograms of meth from a suitcase after they pulled over a car being driven by Blake Arcand of Nanaimo. (Unified Police Department of Greater Salt Lake).
The Unified Police Department of Greater Salt Lake seized 31 kilograms of meth from a suitcase after they pulled over a car being driven by Blake Arcand of Nanaimo. (Unified Police Department of Greater Salt Lake).
Alexa Huffman
