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Former N.S. Mountie sentenced to decade in prison for theft, cocaine trafficking

Jul 4, 2019 | 11:09 AM

HALIFAX — A former Nova Scotia Mountie has been sentenced to 10 years in a minimum security prison for stealing 10 kilograms of cocaine from an exhibit locker and arranging sales that earned him $100,000 in cash.

Craig Robert Burnett — former commander of an RCMP National Port Enforcement Team — stole the drug from the force’s Nova Scotia headquarters about eight years ago, and replaced it with another substance.

Before he sentenced Burnett, Nova Scotia Supreme Court Justice James Chipman said the former senior officer’s “egregious breach of trust” was motivated by financial gain.

Burnett was convicted in April on seven charges following a 21-day trial.