Image

Addicted drug trafficker says police may have saved his life with drug raid arrest

August 27, 2021

Alex Kurial/Local Journalism Initiative

Derrick Pillon was addicted to drugs and selling them to feed his habit.

The Lambton County man has been in jail since February after Sarnia Police raided a home on Mitton Street, but he told the court it may have been the best thing for him.

Pillon, 41, appeared in Sarnia Court by video last month pleading guilty to his part in a February drug raid yielding thousands of dollars in drugs and cash. He’s been in custody since his arrest but a release date is now on the horizon.

Pillon became the focus of a drug investigation by the Sarnia Police Vice Unit at the end of 2020. By Feb. 25, enough evidence had been gathered through surveillance on his Mitton Street South home to justify a search warrant.

Police entered the home and arrested Pillon and three others, including Pillon’s 20 year-old girlfriend who he was under a court order to stay away from.

The raid turned up 15.15 grams crystal meth, 3.95 grams cocaine, 3.79 grams fentanyl, $3,300 cash and various drug paraphernalia including a debt list.

The total value of all drugs was $3,384, according to police.

Pillon accepted responsibility for the crystal meth portion of the seizure in court along with a pair of bail breaches.

Defence Lawyer Sarah Donohue says her client is an addict trafficker, dealing drugs to fuel his own habit.

Pillon, she says, “straightened out briefly” but then “self-sabotaged himself and put himself back in jail because he was unable to cope with his personal circumstances at that time.”

For his part, Pillon was anything but bitter about the experience. “I’m just thankful to the police for actually arresting me,” he says. “Without being arrested I could have very well died.”

Donohue says Pillon has participated in several rehabilitation programs while locked up despite enduring a lengthy COVID-19 lockdown and even contracting the disease.

Pillon admits it has been tough in the last few months.

“I’ve been shipped around, I haven’t had any visitors, haven’t been able to see any family. So it’s been tough.

“But things are looking up for me,” says Pillon.

Donohue says Pillon already has a job lined up when he’s released.

Justice Deborah Austin sentenced the Lambton man to 270 days in jail. He was credited with serving 206 days for his time in custody before he plead guilty. Another 20 days was credited to him for being incarcerated during the pandemic. That’s typical of many sentences during the pandemic.

That leaves 44 days of his 270 day sentence for Pillon yet to serve at the Stratford jail, where he is now housed.

“I think that, while lenient, it is a jail sentence of some significance that takes into account the nature of the substance, the quantity and the circumstances,” says Austin.

“A judicial pre-trial was held in which some frailties in the case were discussed and factored into the certainty of this resolution which I am prepared to respect,” she says.
Pillon’s lawyer added the amount of drugs seized during the Feb. 25 raid was at “lower end of trafficking level quantity of methamphetamine.”

Pillon has been banned from owning a weapon for the next 10 years and has forfeited any cash which police seized during the raid.

The Local Journalism Initiative supports the creation of original civic journalism that covers the diverse needs of underserved communities across Canada.

Share This

Image
Front Page

Remembering Newell Hastings

June 14, 2025

Heather Wright/The Independent Sunday, Newell Hasting’s service to King and Country over a century ago was remembered in a peaceful church cemetery near Watford. Hasting was born in Petrolia and his family moved to Watford around the turn of the century. He signed up to serve in the miltia with Watford’s 149th Battalion before being called up for service. He

Read More

Image
Front Page

Sidewalk projects around First Ave this summer

June 13, 2025

Heather Wright/The Independent Sidewalks along First Street in Petrolia will be getting an upgrade once school is out for the summer. It’s part of the latest large project to improve the town’s sidewalk system. In 2023, BM Ross and Associates completed a study on Petrolia’s sidewalk system and found it lacking. It suggested $1.5 million in sidewalk construction was needed

Read More

Image
Front Page

Aamjiwnaang evacuates parts of community as INEOS decommissioning increases benzene levels

June 13, 2025

Leaders of the Aamjiwnaang First Nation are evacuating residents between Churchill Road and Tashmoo Ave after high levels of benzene have been detected in the area. Just before noon Friday, INEOS Styrolutions issued a notice saying hourly benzene emissions have been detected about 0.021 parts per million. The company is decommissioning the plant which is within eyesight of Aamjiwnaang’s band

Read More

Image
Front Page

St Philip’s student wins big at national fair

June 13, 2025

The Independent Ben Harper made a splash at the Canada-Wide Science Fair in Fredericton taking home a bronze medal. The Grade 8 student from St. Philip’s in Petrolia presented his climate-focused project called A Wavy Problem – Navigating the Surges of Climate Change last week and won a bronze medal in his division. The Petrolia student tested six different offshore

Read More