Trio face drug trafficking charges after stop in Niagara turns up fentanyl, meth

Three people from Niagara Region are facing drug trafficking charges after an estimated $60,000 worth of suspected fentanyl and methamphetamine was found in a car on Canada Day, police say.

Niagara Regional Police Service says that around 4:30 p.m. on Thursday, an officer was on patrol on Hwy. 405 near Stanley Avenue in Niagara-on-the-Lake. The officer observed a blue 2003 Audi. After a database check of the vehicle determined the registered owner was a suspended driver, the officer pulled the vehicle over. 

One of the passengers in the car was not wearing a seatbelt and provided a false identity to the officer. While the officer was trying to confirm their identity, a quantity of suspected drugs and proceeds-of-crime money was found in the car. 

During the subsequent search, officers seized188.2 grams of suspected fentanyl, with an estimated street value of  $50,000. They also seized 128.4 grams of suspected methamphetamine, with an estimated street value of $10,000. They also seized $988 cash. 

A traffic stop by our @NRPSRoadSafety Traffic Enforcement Unit officers led to 3 arrests and a seizure of currency and drugs. Click the link for more information: https://t.co/TYj6xtJF4k https://t.co/ZLRkmLZBSt pic.twitter.com/8CHyFSjjZc

— NRPS (@NiagRegPolice) July 3, 2021

Jesse Marius Lalande, age 37, of St. Catharines, faces several charges. He has been charged with two counts of possession of a schedule 1 substance for the purpose of trafficking and two counts of failure to comply with an order, as well as possession of proceeds of property obtained by crime (under $5,000), obstructing a police officer, and failing to properly wear a seatbelt.

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Charles Ian Buckingham, 41, of Niagara-on-the-Lake, has been charged with possession of a schedule 1 substance and possession of a schedule 1 substance for the purpose of trafficking.

Sarah M. Lyon, 37, of Niagara-on-the-Lake, has been charged with possession of a schedule 1 substance and possession of a schedule 1 substance for the purpose of trafficking.

Lalande was held in custody to attend a video bail hearing in a St. Catharines court on Friday. Buckingham and Lyon were released and will have a court date in the future.

(Cover photo courtesy Niagara Regional Police Service.)