A southern Ontario man "caught red-handed" with deadly drugs, a bundle of cash and a loaded handgun in Sault Ste. Marie last summer has been sentenced to nearly six years in a federal penitentiary.
Ryan Cranston pleaded guilty Friday to nine charges, eight of which stemmed from his July 11, 2023 interactions with city police.
A first-time offender with no prior criminal record, he was imprisoned for 70 months for crimes involving a lethal combination of firearms and dangerous drugs.
Cranston, 26, of Ajax, was a passenger in a vehicle the local cops stopped on Dufferin Street just before 9:30 p.m.
He bolted from the car and took off running through the neighbourhood, Ontario Court Justice John Condon heard.
With the assistance of the canine unit, he was eventually discovered in a backyard on Trelawne Avenue.
Cranston had a satchel with a loaded 45-calibre handgun and ammunition.
Officers also located 44 grams of fentanyl, 66 grams methamphetamine and 29 grams of cocaine.
Three cell phones, $36,800 in Canadian currency, and $105 in U.S money were also seized, federal prosecutor Lindsay Marshall said.
Cranston was convicted of possession of a loaded restricted weapon, prohibited ammunition (multiple 45-calibre rounds), and property obtained by crime, three counts of possession of a controlled substance for the purpose of trafficking and two counts of failing to comply with a release order.
He also pleaded guilty to a Feb. 25, 2020 weapons offence for having a loaded restricted firearm that occurred in Peterborough.
Marshall, assistant Crown attorney Trent Wilson and Cranston's lawyer proposed a five-year prison term for the Sault offences, plus a further 18 months consecutive for the Peterborough charge.
"We know how dangerous these drugs are, especially fentanyl," she told Condon.
There is an epidemic in our community and the province that is killing people at an alarming rate, and northern Ontario has been hit the hardest, Marshall said.
The latest statistics indicate 13 opioid toxicity deaths were reported in Sault Ste. Marie in the first three months of this year — the highest rate in the province.
Cranston had large quantities of the three substances, she said.
A pre-sentence report (PSR), prepared for the court, indicated Cranston has no drug issues.
"He was not supporting a drug habit, he's dealing for his own financial gain."
Wilson also referred to the PSR, noting Cranston had a good upbringing and family support.
"We are dealing with an individual who knew better and fell into a lifestyle," the provincial Crown said.
"He's on a release order on a drug charge and a serious violent offence when he comes to our community and is caught red-handed with a large amount of cash and another loaded firearm," Wilson told the court. "It can't get much more aggravating than that."
Defence lawyer Yonatan Eshetu said his client, the father of two, was born and raised in Toronto and is living with his mother in Ajax.
His guilty pleas demonstrate remorse and save court resources here and in Peterborough.
The Aurora lawyer agreed the proposed global sentence of six and a half years is appropriate, but asked the judge to give Cranston credit for the time he's been in pre-sentence custody under house arrest.
"We are dealing with a young first offender with no history of incarceration."
Cranston spent two years plus under house arrest after he was charged in Peterborough.
Following the incident in the Sault, he was released on bail with onerous conditions and spent more than a year with a curfew and an ankle bracelet, Esthetu said.
Condon told the accused when he read the pre-sentence report: "It sounds like you are a good guy from Ajax" and questioned why he was in this community.
"I think I have a pretty good idea why you chose Sault Ste. Marie," the judge said, pointing to the community's high death rate from such drugs.
Just walk outside of the courthouse onto Queen Street and you can see some of the consequences of opioids here.
"It's ravaging Sault Ste. Marie."
Addicts have a disease and those who sell them drugs give them more disease, he said.
"As I was thinking about that and I look at the PSR, it boggles my mind the absolute disconnect from the person here and the report I read."
Condon then questioned what Cranston's mother must think about this.
"You let your mother down," he said, suggesting there was no way she raised her son to behave this way.
"When you finish this sentence look her in the eye and swear you will never do this again."
Condon accepted the lawyers' proposed sentence, and also agreed with the defence request for a credit for the time Cranston has spent under house arrest and other conditions after he was charged.
He imposed 54 months behind bars for the Sault drug and firearm offences, plus a further 16 months for what occurred in Peterborough.
Cranston is prohibited from possessing weapons for 10 years and must provide a DNA sample for the national registry.