Hamilton police charge man with selling cocaine, operating non-essential business

As if a trafficking charge was not enough, Hamilton police added a fine for operating a non-essential business to an alleged drug dealer.

Drug unit officers began following an aggressive driver on Friday. Const. Jerome Stewart says the driver allegedly made several stops to conduct drug deals. Officers arrested him for trafficking around 8 p.m. and they seized cocaine and cash.

Stewart says they also slapped a ticket under Ontario’s new Emergency Management and Civil Protection Act, invoked this month in an effort to fight the COVID-19 pandemic. The man can face up to a $750 fine if found guilty on that charge.