A Port Alberni couple finally had their day in court, more than 3 years after being charged with trafficking in cocaine.
Terrence and Linda Hemmingsen were arrested in April 2015 after police watched a suspected drug dealer come and go from their Tebo Avenue home.
Inside, investigators found $7000 worth of cocaine, two scales, hundreds of small baggies, and $650 in cash.
The couple was arrested along with Brian Doucette, who was believed to have been running the dial-a-dope operation, using the Hemmingsens as a stash house.
The court heard how a combination of cancer in family members and the stock market crash led the couple to befriend a local drug dealer and become addicted to cocaine, eventually becoming his weigh station and stash house.
The 56-year-old head sawyer at APD admitted he made the worst mistake of his life at the worst time of his life, but has been clean since the arrest 3 years ago.
Doucette fled shortly after release and remains at large.
Charges against the couple were all stayed except for one charge of possession for the purpose of trafficking against 56-year old Terry Hemmingsen, who was given a suspended sentence with 2 years probation, fined $400 and ordered to complete 100 hours of community service.