CANADIAN SENTENCED TO TEN YEARS IN PRISON FOR ECSTASY SMUGGLING
Defendant Arrested Delivering More Than 100 Pounds of Ecstasy
BRADLEY KEITH BOURQUE, 35, of Langley, British Columbia, Canada, was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to ten years in prison and three years of supervised release for conspiracy to distribute MDMA/Ecstasy. BOURQUE was arrested October 20, 2009, and pleaded guilty on January 6, 2010. At sentencing, U.S. District Judge James L. Robart emphasized the serious nature of the offense and called attention to the secret smuggling compartment built into BOURQUE’s truck, which Judge Robart said was proof that BOURQUE either had gone on other smuggling runs before or planned to do more runs in the future.
According to records filed in the case, BOURQUE was arrested October 20, 2009, as he delivered about 200,000 ecstasy pills weighing 51.5 kilos to undercover agents from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). BOURQUE was bragging to officers about his smuggling, and had a special secret compartment built into his GMC pickup truck. The secret compartment contained another 11 kilos of ecstasy pills and more than 6 kilos of ecstasy powder. Border crossing records show BOURQUE had crossed from Canada into the U.S. five times in 2009 prior to his arrest.
“For some time, Bradley Keith Bourque operated as a professional drug smuggler, carrying large loads of ecstasy into the United States. Due to good investigative work, he was caught in the act with a massive quantity of ecstasy and now stands before the Court for sentencing,” Assistant United States Attorney Michael Scoville wrote in his sentencing memo. “The Court should not let pass the opportunity to send a message to would-be Canadian drug smugglers by imposing a substantial sentence on Bourque.”
“Today’s sentencing is a reminder of the price to be paid by those who disregard the law and become involved in the illegal drug trade,” said Leigh Winchell, special agent in charge of ICE’s Office of Investigations in Seattle. “ICE continues to aggressively investigate these types of cases to stem the flow of Ecstasy or any illicit substance into our communities.”
The case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michael Scoville.
For additional information please contact Emily Langlie, Public Affairs Officer for the United States Attorney’s Office, at (206) 553-4110 or Emily.Langlie@USDOJ.Gov.
