Several criminal charges laid against a man who reportedly tried to sell the infamous Rob Ford crack video to Toronto and U.S. media have now been dropped, according to the Ministry of the Attorney General.
The charges laid against 34-year-old Mohamed Farah, which were unrelated to the so-called crack video, included possession of a firearm, ammunition and proceeds of crime, according to the Globe and Mail.
The Crown has also dropped charges against three others, Nicholas Obeng, Muhideen Jama and Halima Said, who were arrested in connection with the Project Traveller investigation last June.
“The Crown has a duty to assess a prosecution at every stage of the proceedings, and is duty bound to withdraw charges if there is no reasonable prospect of conviction, or if it is not in the public interest to proceed,” said Heather Visser, a spokesperson for the Ministry of the Attorney General, told CP24.
“I can confirm that prior to the withdrawal of the charges, a number of the accused completed community service hours and made charitable donations.”
Hundreds of charges, including firearms trafficking and drug offences, were laid in the Toronto Police investigation, which targeted those who were reportedly associated with the Dixon City Bloods gang. Many were arrested last June when Toronto police raided an apartment building 320 Dixon Road.
