Mounties in B.C. have issued a Canada-wide warrant and are seeking an INTERPOL Red Notice from international police forces after a Surrey man convicted of drug trafficking ran away from the country while awaiting sentencing.
According to the BC RCMP, Raj Kumar Mehmi, a 60-year-old truck driver from Surrey, was sentenced to 15 years in prison after being found guilty of smuggling 80 kilograms of cocaine into B.C. through the Pacific Highway border crossing.
Supt. Bert Ferreira, officer in charge of the BC RCMP Border Integrity Program, said: “With about half of the toxic drug deaths in B.C. involving stimulants such as cocaine, this significant drug seizure and the resulting criminal conviction … demonstrates our firm commitment in keeping Canadians safe from the most serious criminal threats facing our nation.”
According to police, Mehmi was initially apprehended on November 17, 2017, after the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) randomly selected his truck for a secondary examination and discovered 80 “sealed bricks” of cocaine inside the semi-trailer truck he was driving.
The police said: “At the time of this seizure, the bulk street value of the cocaine was estimated at $3.2 million.”
Mehmi was later charged with importation of a controlled substance and possession for the purpose of trafficking.
He was found guilty of both charges in September 2022 and a subsequent sentencing hearing was fixed for Jan. 9, 2023.
RCMP Corp. Arash Seyed said: “On October 11, 2022, Mehmi fled to India after boarding a flight from Vancouver, BC, and arriving in New Delhi the following day.
“Since Mehmi failed to appear for his sentencing hearing, an application to sentence him in absentia was filed, and subsequently granted on September 15, 2023.”
His sentencing hearing happened in November. He bagged nine years in prison for importation and six years for trafficking. Also, Mehmi received a lifetime ban on firearms.
Under the INTERPOL Red Notice, police are seeking help from international counterparts to help “locate and provisionally arrest Mehmi, pending extradition, surrender, or similar legal action.”
The RCMP says he was given a new passport and is a Canadian citizen.
Seyed said: “If you locate Mehmi, or have information regarding his whereabouts, please do not approach him, and contact your local police agency, or anonymously report it through the BC Crime Stoppers hotline at 1-800-222-8477.”
