A photo of the drugs seized from the vehicle Coutts was driving. (Submitted/ RCMP)

By Nigel Maxwell

Court proceedings

Big River drug trafficking case results in guilty verdicts

Jan 5, 2026 | 3:35 PM

A man who openly admitted in court to selling drugs to pay for his addiction, has been found guilty of trafficking meth, cocaine and LSD, but was successful arguing the fentanyl seized by police was for personal use.

Wilson Coutts’s case was spoken to Monday morning at Prince Albert Provincial Court. The verdicts from Judge Healey came a little more than two months after the trial.

Instead of trafficking fentanyl, Coutts was found guilty of a lesser charge of possession. Guilty verdicts were also found on charges of fraud, obstruction, and proceeds of crime under $5,000.

Sentencing arguments have been scheduled for Feb. 9.

The case dates back to late December, 2023. A traffic stop in Big River resulted in the seizure of 450 grams of cocaine, 285 grams of meth, 111 LSD blotters, and 63 grams of an unknown substance investigators suspected at the time to contain fentanyl.

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There was also over $2,400 in cash.

Coutts testified that during the pandemic, after his construction business went under, he began spending more time at home and turned to drugs to cope with depression.

To pay for his drug addiction, Coutts was making regular trips back to B.C., picking up drugs and then selling them in the Big River area.

He sold a gram of cocaine for $70 and a gram of meth for $30.

When asked by the Crown Prosecutor Margaret Sproule about the LSD that was found, Coutts said he bought it from a friend who was planning to sell a larger supply at a music festival; and he wanted some around just in case he ever needed it.

Healy stated he did not find Coutts to be a reliable or credible witness. He noted Coutts himself had admitted in his testimony that he used a false name, possessed all the drugs found, and that he trafficked meth and cocaine.

With respect to the fentanyl, Healey said he was confident Coutts consumed most, if not all of the fentanyl he bought from B.C., and that there is reasonable doubt that he trafficked the illicit substance.

Also charged was Marcia McMahon who was a passenger in the vehicle and was carrying a bag containing drugs.

She was sentenced last March and entered guilty pleas to possession for the purpose of trafficking cocaine and meth. She received a one-year sentence (time served) plus six months probation.

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nigel.maxwell@pattisonmedia.com

On X: @nigelmaxwell