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A band councillor and former chief of the Key First Nation faces new drug and weapons charges nearly three years after he pleaded guilty to drug trafficking.

Officers arrested Clarence Papequash, 64, on Tuesday after executing a warrant at a home on the First Nation, according to an RCMP news release. He is charged with five counts of drug possession for the purpose of trafficking, four firearms charges and one count of possession of property obtained by crime.

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In an interview on Wednesday, Key First Nation Chief Rodney Brass said he suspended Papequash from his position on the band council “effective immediately” as soon as the RCMP informed him of the charges.

Papequash stepped down as the band’s chief in 2014 after pleading guilty to drug trafficking; he was later re-elected as a band councillor.

“We’re very thankful for the RCMP’s work,” Brass said, noting drugs are a serious issue for the First Nation.