Kingston Police announce arrests after prison drug trafficking investigation

Update (Thursday, Mar. 23, 2023, at 4:50 p.m.):
The Correctional Service of Canada (CSC) has confirmed that Shaimar Stanberry, the Toronto man who was the target of a recent seven-month-long drug trafficking investigation, is currently in federal custody, however, CSC would not disclose at which institution he is located. Kingston Police said they could also not disclose which institution the Stanberry was directing the drug trafficking operation out of, but did clarify that he was arrested and charged in connection with their investigation on Thursday, Mar. 9, 2023.

Original article (Thursday, Mar. 23, 2023, at 2:13 p.m.):
Kingston Police have concluded a seven-month drug trafficking investigation that led to the arrests of two people from the Greater Toronto Area (GTA).

Police announced the conclusion and results of the investigation on Thursday, Mar. 23, 2023, detailing that the operation – dubbed Project Lock Up – targeted a man from Toronto, Shaimar Stanberry, “for running a drug trafficking operation from within a federal prison in the Ontario region.” According to police, Stanberry was using “a mobile device” to direct people to transport fentanyl from the GTA to Kingston. As part of the investigation, another individual, Mikayla Delutis of Brampton, was arrested in November 2022 and found to be in possession of fentanyl and cocaine “during one of these deliveries.”

Kingston Police said that the Correctional Service of Canada (CSC) assisted their officers in bringing the investigation to a close by “seizing the mobile device.” It is unclear if Stanberry was incarcerated at the time, or how he was accessing the federal institution if not.

As a result of the investigation, police seized quantities of cocaine and fentanyl. According to police, Delutis was released from custody with a court date, while Stanberry was remanded into custody. The two have been charged as follows:

Stanberry, a 26-year-old from Toronto, was charged with trafficking fentanyl.

Delutis, a 26-year-old from Brampton, was charged with possession of fentanyl and cocaine for the purpose of trafficking.

Police noted that Project Lock Up was made possible through funding provided by the provincial government through Criminal Intelligence Service Ontario.

Kingstonist has inquired with Kingston Police as to when Stanberry was arrested, if he was incarcerated at the time, and which federal institution(s) the trafficking occurred at. Kingstonist has also inquired with the CSC as to which of its institution(s) were involved in this investigation. Response was not received from either party by time of publication.

This article will be updated if/when more information becomes available.