A man who wasn't the initial target of a police search of his house found himself securely on their radar after they took a look at his confiscated cellphone.
His name as displayed on the phone: "Jason Pauchay Drug Dealer."
Pauchay and his girlfriend, Clarissa Prosper, were both charged with drug trafficking and possession of the proceeds of crime after police found marijuana and just over $5,000 cash in the safe in the bedroom they shared.
Pauchay, 24, pleaded guilty Tuesday in Saskatoon provincial court and received a oneyear conditional sentence.
The search occurred after police obtained a warrant following surveillance of a house in Saskatoon on July 21, when police counted 36 people coming and going, many of them identified as sex trade workers - what police considered to be a sign of drug trafficking. Police had reason to believe there was cocaine and a gun in the residence, said Crown prosecutor Kathy Grier while reading the facts of the case in court.
There were three living areas in the residence, said Grier, and Pauchay wasn't the main target of the investigation. However, the search of the house turned up four baggies of marijuana and the cash in the safe in the bedroom he shared with Prosper, who recently pleaded guilty and received a similar sentence to the same charges as Pauchay. The couple has two young children.
Pauchay, who is originally from the Yellow Quill First Nation, had no prior criminal record.
hspray@thestarphoenix.com