Scott Rozsa, 37, pleaded guilty to several charges stemming from his May 2004 arrest, which also turned up three guns and more than $130,000 cash inside his car and home.He was on bail at the time for an earlier arrest for conspiracy to traffic five kilograms of cocaine from British Columbia. "He was fairly high on the chain of distribution here in Manitoba," Crown attorney Michael Foote said in court Monday.
Rozsa admitted to the conspiracy charge and was sentenced to three years in prison.
"The clear message here is crime doesn't pay," said defence lawyer Tim Killeen.
The university-educated Rozsa had been living a crime-free lifestyle that included being an award-winning car salesman until he got involved with the wrong people, the defence lawyer said.He was receiving cocaine by the kilogram "off the boat" from Columbia and repackaging it in his home for resale in Winnipeg, court was told.Killeen said his client learned a valuable lesson during his previous jail stint and it's unfortunate he is now going back into custody, away from his family and community supports.Many reference letters were submitted to court, and a packed gallery of loved ones attended Monday's hearing."There's a real good chance you have turned your life around," Queen's Bench Justice John Scurfield told Rozsa.
"It frankly saddens me that I have to do what I have to do today."Rozsa was given double-time credit for six months of pre-trial custody, leaving him with another six years on his sentence. He won't be eligible for accelerated parole after serving one-sixth of his time because he's no longer a first-time federal offender.
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