A B.C. Supreme Court judge has given a cocaine dealer a lower sentence so the non-citizen wouldn’t face automatic deportation to his native country.

Justice William Ehrcke noted in his ruling, released Tuesday, that Mark Abude “may be subject to a removal order from Canada as a consequence of his conviction.”

Abude, now 29, came to B.C. from the Philippines at age 14 and is a permanent resident but not a citizen.

He pleaded guilty to one count of trafficking in North Vancouver for selling cocaine to an undercover officer eight times over several months in 2012.

Ehrcke said that if Abude is ordered deported for the conviction, “an appeal of such order is only possible if the sentence is less than six months.”

So he sentenced Abude to six months less a day in jail.

“That will be real jail, not a conditional sentence,” Ehrcke said.

“In my view, no shorter sentence would be adequate to express society’s denunciation of this crime and to deter you and others from committing similar drug offences. Indeed, were it not for your immigration status, I would have imposed a lengthier sentence.”

There have been several recent cases where convicted drug traffickers and gangsters have been ordered deported despite having come to Canada as young children.

The Immigration and Refugee Protection Act states that a permanent resident or foreign national is inadmissible if they’ve been convicted of a crime with a maximum sentence of more than 10 years and if their sentence was six months of longer.

They have the ability to appeal a deportation order if the sentence they received is less than six months.

“I accept that this collateral consequence of his conviction is a circumstance which may justify a slightly lower sentence than would otherwise be imposed for this offence,” Ehrcke said.

Abude had no prior criminal record, Ehrcke noted, and has worked in the construction industry since he was 18.

Abude has three young children and a fourth on the way. He claimed he got involved in selling cocaine because he wasn’t earning enough for his family.

“He said he became involved in the dial‑a‑dope operation when he was randomly approached on the street by individuals he did not know, who told him he could make some extra money,” Ehrcke noted. “In fact, he did not find it particularly profitable, and he stopped selling drugs on his own initiative in mid‑October 2012, about five months before he was arrested.”

Abude expressed remorse for his actions.

His pre-sentence report said he felt “ashamed and embarrassed by his criminal involvement and believes he let down his family.”

“He also explains that he does not want to be involved in the criminal lifestyle and acknowledges that at the time of the offence he could have found legitimate means to support his family,” the report said.

kbolan@postmedia.com

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