Drug trafficking charges stayed against B.C. woman arrested in OPP investigation

Mia Sanchez, of British Columbia, is pictured outside the courthouse in Barrie, Ont. (CTV News/Mike Arsalides)

A British Columbia woman accused of being part of a large-scale drug trafficking ring in Simcoe County had her charges stayed Tuesday in an Orillia courtroom.

Mia Sanchez, 22, was one of several people charged by Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) in August 2024 following what Orillia OPP described as a months-long investigation with the assistance of the Organized Crime Enforcement Bureau, Royal Canadian Mounted Police and Vancouver Police Department.

At the time, investigators said OPP officers in Orillia “were able to obtain judicial authorization on several different types of warrants and production orders, which led to the identity of the involved traffickers.”

Police said search warrants were executed leading to the recovery of a loaded 9mm handgun, prohibited knives, a stolen police bulletproof vest, seven cell phones, Nazi paraphernalia along with $12,000 cash and a total of about 500 grams of fentanyl, cocaine and heroin.

• Related: Drugs, handgun, Nazi paraphernalia: 5 people charged in Simcoe County bust

Charges against Sanchez, stayed by the Public Prosecution Service of Canada included possession for the purpose of trafficking cocaine, fentanyl, heroin and possession of property obtained by crime over $5,000.

Three men, arrested alongside Sanchez last summer, accused of weapons and drug trafficking charges remain in custody. The allegations against them have not been tested in court.

A staying of charges means a pause or suspension of criminal proceedings, which allows for the prosecution to resume the case within a year.