Undercover cop case continues

A Toronto jury heard more allegations against Hamilton detective Constable Craig Ruthowsky today, including new evidence, that the officer was working with drug dealers and pocketing money. The 44 year-old has been suspended with pay since 2012, and is now on trial for charges that include bribery, trafficking cocaine and breach of trust.

Former undercover officer Jennifer Lafleur was back on the stand after she broke down in tears yesterday, recalling the first operation that left her truly scared. She and her partner were trying to make a major drug deal with thousands of dollars, and were moved three times before they met up with their targets. Lafleur says she got urgent messages to pull out, and the deal was not completed. She was not allowed to give opinions in court, and her testimony ended with an agreed statement of fact. That it would be inappropriate for an officer to give up the identity of an undercover officer to a criminal.

The crown alleges Craig Ruthowsky was being paid to protect a dealer, and that the officer called the dealer after the botched sting with Jennifer Lafleur, telling him he almost sold drugs to undercover officers.

Next, the jury heard from Toronto Police drug expert John Margetson, who testified at length on his knowledge. He said he has never heard of a police officer taking a substance to a private lab for testing, as Ruthowsky is alleged to have done, to identify a cocaine cutting agent to cut costs for his dealer-associate. Health Canada does this for free for police.

He also said the plants seized in this Stoney Creek bust in 2011 are too young to have produced any of the marijuana sold in the drug market. Court has heard Ruthowsky’s dealer-associate gave up this grow op in return for half the product, and he showed up at the scene to confirm the officer’s assertion the plants were not salable.

Finally, the jury heard the beginning of a police interview with another officer who was once on the guns and weapons squad with Ruthowsky. Through his video statement, Robert Hansen says he knew that Ruthowsky got rid of a 5-foot-tall cocaine press that had been sitting in their office for some time.

Ruthowsky is alleged to have sold the press to another dealer, taking two thousand and giving his dealer associate, the original cocaine press owner, $3000.

Hansen’s video statement continues Friday.