A Windsor man has been sentenced to jail despite Windsor police accidentally destroying a key piece of evidence.
31-year-old Miles Meraw was sentenced to 30 months in prison, but with credit for time already served, he was handed a sentence of 20 months in jail.
Earlier this year, Meraw was found guilty of possession of cocaine for the purpose of trafficking but during the trial, it was revealed Windsor police lost the cocaine, about 9 ounces or $25,000 worth.
Windsor Police investigated and concluded the drugs were accidentally destroyed during a routine purge.
During today's sentence, the judge did not make mention of the lost evidence.
The case dates back to August 2013 when Meraw was arrested as part of a larger investigation using wiretaps.
Defence lawyer Ken Marley says he had been hoping for a more lenient sentence.
"I'm disappointed that the sentence is as serious and lengthy as it is," says Marley. "I'm gratified though that her Honour found it appropriate to place him in a reformatory as a opposed to sending him to a penitentiary which the prosecution had sought."
The St. Lawrence Valley Reformatory is one of three reformatories in Ontario that has dedicated treatment programs, specifically for mental health and addictions.
The court heard Meraw is a first time offender and began doing marijuana when he was eight years old, used mushrooms in Grade 8 and cocaine by Grade 11.
He has been in custody the equivalent of ten months and has concluded a number of programs including anger management, substance abuse and goal setting.