Lethbridge Courthouse

By Lara Fominoff

Promising Lethbridge soccer player sentenced to prison on drug related charges

Feb 10, 2020 | 1:57 PM

LETHBRIDGE, AB – As 25-year-old Peter Ntignee sat in the prisoner box in Lethbridge Provincial Court Monday (Feb. 10), his father sat quietly near the back of the courtroom, quietly weeping into his hands.

Ntignee, who once tried out for Canada’s Olympic soccer team, and who had scholarships to SAIT and the Lethbridge College*, was convicted of two counts of trafficking a controlled substance (cocaine) and possession of the proceeds of crime.

His lawyer, David Chow, told Judge Sylvia Oishi his client was a hard-working man who worked as a concrete layer and DJ, but who was drawn in by potentially “easy” money as a drug dealer. He was also “the kind of person you very unlikely to see back here,” he told the court.

The Federal Crown agreed, indicating that Ntignee had two minor charges on his record dating back to 2014 for disobeying a court order and obstructing a peace officer. A joint submission was then presented to Oishi.

She noted that while Ntignee was engaged in an ongoing drug operation and that cocaine is a particularly insidious drug, he did express remorse for his actions and pleaded guilty, avoiding a trial.

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Ntignee was sentenced to 30 months in a federal penitentiary, while the rest of the charges against him were withdrawn.

Case History

According to an Agreed Statement of Facts, in August 2018, members of the Lethbridge Police Service Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit began an investigation into Ntignee’s suspected drug trafficking activities.

On Sept. 8, 2018, undercover police officers went to the Polish Canadian Club where Ntignee was hosting a party and bought one gram of cocaine for $60.

Then on Oct. 25, another undercover officer contacted Ntignee on his cell phone about buying an ounce of cocaine for $1,600. A meeting was arranged at the Smokehouse Pub, where the transaction took place.

The third buy occurred on Nov. 8, when an officer contacted Ntignee on his cell to inquire about buying half an ounce of cocaine for $1,100. The buy took place at his home, which was in west Lethbridge at the time.

The fourth interaction included a request in early Dec. for the purchase of nine ounces of cocaine for $17,000. Undercover officers also found out at the time that Ntignee had moved from west Lethbridge to the city’s north side. Police then obtained a search warrant which was executed on Dec. 6.

Ntignee himself was in possession of 3.8g of powder cocaine, 2g of crack cocaine and $3,125 in cash. Inside his home, police found 81g of cocaine, 37.6g of crack cocaine, digital scales, a measuring cup, plastic baggies and packaging materials, and two cell phones – one which was used to contact police.

23-year-old co-accused Stevie Campbell of Lethbridge was also charged in connection with the case. She pleaded guilty to trafficking and possession for the purpose of trafficking on Oct. 31.

*This story has been corrected to reflect that Peter Ntignee in fact was offered a scholarship and/or played at Lethbridge College, rather than the University of Lethbridge. A mistake appears to have been made by Ntignee’s lawyer, David Chow.