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B.C. court records show Giuseppe “Joey” De Luca was found guilty in 2010 of possession of controlled substances for the purpose of trafficking, stemming from an incident in Nanaimo when he was 26. Asked Thursday how he reconciles his new role as a law-and-order advocate with his own criminal convictions, De Luca said: “That was the past. That was seven years ago, and I’ve got a whole different life now.” He declined to talk in more detail about the case or answer what kind of drugs were involved.

More recently, in 2013, De Luca was convicted of assault causing bodily harm following an incident in Burnaby, court records show, an incident which he described this week as self-defence, but which led to a breach of his probation condition to keep the peace and be of good behaviour.

When a private citizen finds themselves in the media, it is not necessarily newsworthy, relevant or fair to bring up their past, including criminal convictions.

However, De Luca said he understood, given his new, self-appointed role as a public commenter on crime prevention and safety, why a journalist would report on his criminal past (which is a matter of public record) and ask him questions about it.

Canada is safer than many other countries, De Luca said, but added: “For now it is, but what happens with all this carelessness, with open borders? I mean people need to be checked and vetted before they come in to make sure they’re safe. That’s the whole point of national security.”