A day after he appeared in provincial court to be charged with cocaine-related offences, Dustin Etheridge was back Friday for a preliminary hearing into other matters.
Etheridge, 26, has a slew of charges before the court, ranging from breaching court orders to conspiring with three other men to murder a Hells Angels associate.
Related links:
Operation B-Tarantula nets six men in NL on charges of plotting to murder, cocain trafficking
‘Bizarre and random’ incident nets St. John’s man three months in jail
After a half-day hearing Friday, a judge ruled there was enough evidence to send Etheridge to trial on charges of breaching court orders, obstructing a police officer and attempting to bribe an RNC officer with money to interfere with the administration of justice. The offences are alleged to have happened last December.
Etheridge will be arraigned on those charges in Newfoundland and Labrador Supreme Court this fall.
In the meantime, he will remain in custody on charges of plotting to murder Bradley Summers, as well as a number of offences related to the carrying of a loaded handgun and breaches of court orders, for which he was denied bail. For those charges, he has a co-accused — 34-year-old John Squires.
Thursday afternoon, Etheridge was one of five men escorted into court for short appearances on charges related to Operation B-Tarantula, a joint RNC/RCMP investigation that originated with Etheridge’s alleged criminal activity. He was charged with trafficking cocaine, conspiring to traffic cocaine, possessing more than $5,000 in cash obtained from selling the drug, dangerous driving and breaching a court order.
Thirty-two-year-old Corey Stevens, 29-year-old Bradley Squires, 19-year-old Brandon Glasco and 24-year-old Shane Clarke were also charged with offences related to cocaine trafficking, while Glasco is also facing weapons charges.
As well, Glasco and Clarke were charged with having a role in the plan to murder Summers.
Police say more charges are likely to come as a result of B-Tarantula, which has also resulted in the seizure of hundreds of thousands of dollars, seven kilograms of cocaine, $240,000 in cash, 20 firearms, two vehicles and various drug paraphernalia. The investigation has spanned four provinces, police say.
Last month, Etheridge was sentenced to three months behind bars for an incident the judge described as “bizarre and random.” Etheridge had approached a woman sitting in her vehicle in the Torbay Mall parking lot, tapped on her window with a knife and demanded she roll the window down. When she didn’t, he became angry and used the knife to make deep scratches on the outside of the car.
Etheridge later told police he had been robbed of his cellphone and carpentry tools and believed the young woman was responsible. He turned the knife over to officers.
Twitter: @tara_bradbury
