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Denecho King's brother awaits sentencing on trafficking charge

The brother of accused murderer Denecho King awaits sentencing after pleading guilty to a drug trafficking charge.

Travis King, 21, appeared in before Justice Karan Shaner in NWT Supreme Court Thursday.

He pleaded guilty to one count of possessing a substance for the purpose of trafficking – the lone charge brought against him by the Crown.

On May 27, 2016, a vehicle, carrying King and three other males, was stopped by RCMP just south of Hay River after the officer noticed the driver was speeding.

Police questioned King and the others about whether they were involved in a car accident that had occurred near Enterprise not long before.

All of the occupants denied any involvement in the accident. An investigation soon revealed King and two other occupants were inside a different vehicle that was involved the accident, before entering the vehicle that was pulled over.

As a result King, the driver of the vehicle that crashed, and another passenger were arrested for obstruction of justice and were transported to the Hay River RCMP detachment.

In an effort to locate the smell of marijuana previously detected during the roadside stop, officers strip-searched King – discovering 111 grams of powdered cocaine concealed in his underwear.

King's lawyer, Peter Harte, challenged the drug charge that followed, filing a charter application that argued his client was arrested and stripped searched illegally.

Harte's challenge was ultimately dismissed by Justice Shaner.

With a conviction being entered following his guilty plea, Harte urged Justice Shaner to consider the troubled upbringing of his client – marked by neglect, homelessness and abuse – when reaching a sentencing decision.

In his call for an 18-month sentence followed by probation, Harte underscore the trauma King endured as a child, including having his first encounter with social services at the age of one.

With Indigenous offenders already over-represented in the criminal justice system, Harte asked Shaner not to send another Indigenous man to prison.

The Crown is calling for a three year sentence.

King, who doesn't have any prior convictions, will learn his fate when he's back in court on June 18.