Pubdate: Sat, 16 Jun 2007 Source: Winnipeg Free Press (CN MB) Copyright: 2007 Winnipeg Free Press Contact: http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/502 Author: Mike McIntyre Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mjcn.htm (Cannabis - Canada) PILOT COULDN'T RESIST DREAM OF DRUG RICHES It Died With Plane Crash In Lake WHETHER it was a plane, a train or an automobile, Joel Maguet wasn't very picky when it came to dreaming up innovative schemes on how to peddle drugs across Canada. But it would be his desire to sink to new depths -- or rise to rare heights -- that would ultimately cost him his freedom and then his life. Maguet, 33, first came on the criminal radar in 2001 when RCMP in western Manitoba raided a drug operation the likes of which they'd never seen. It was in eight railway boxcars buried three metres underground on a rural property near Dauphin. Maguet was the alleged mastermind of an operation that police believe took nearly two years to plan and build, cost more than $100,000 but could have yielded a yearly marijuana crop worth at least $1.4 million. "This was highly organized crime. It is the most sophisticated bunker we have unearthed in this province," Crown attorney Erin Magas told court during Maguet's sentencing hearing in 2002. He was sentenced to five years, three months in prison under a joint agreement that gave him credit for entering a speedy guilty plea. Several other accused were also convicted for their roles. Details of the hearing were uncovered Friday through court transcripts obtained by the Free Press. They reveal that police seized numerous personal items of Maguet's inside the buried railway cars, including the names, addresses and phone numbers of Hells Angels members in Manitoba and Saskatchewan. Police also seized nine high-powered handguns and rifles, many of which had been stolen. There were also several crossbows and even night-vision equipment to scope out predators who might get close to the site. "It's clear the individuals who had this operation were prepared to use whatever force they saw necessary to protect their operation," Magas said. Maguet and his colleagues likely would have escaped if not for a tipster who came forward to police in 2001, court was told. "Had it not been for the confidential informant, it is unlikely we would have ever found this," said Magas. Maguet's criminal record actually began in 1992 and included seven prior convictions for incidents including assault causing bodily harm, drug possession and weapons offences. Yet his 2002 sentence marked his very first stint in jail. Maguet was released on parole in 2003, then settled down with his family near Dauphin and became the father of a little girl in 2004. But friends and sources say he never could resist the lure of a quick buck through the drug trade and cooked up another unusual scheme last year involving himself, "right-hand man" Dan Atkinson and a third friend. Maguet took his pilot training, bought a single-engine Mooney Mark 21 and got his licence about two months ago. He even had a private landing strip built on his expansive farm property in Ste. Rose du Lac. He then quickly picked up where he left off in 2001, this time offering a unique air trafficking service that was quickly in big demand because of the method of delivery he could offer. In a time when drug-filled semi-trailers are being searched and seized on a regular basis on Canadian highways, Maguet knew he was virtually untouchable in the sky. He did manage to avoid police detection this time -- at least until Monday, when his airborne operation literally fell from the sky and crashed into West Hawk Lake. - --- MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom