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The boyfriend of a London nurse who was gunned down in the couple’s driveway two years ago was granted bail Monday following his latest arrest on gun and drug charges.
Ali Bhatti, 30, was one of three men arrested earlier this month after London police carried out a series of searches across the city, seizing five handguns, a silencer, seven extended magazines, ammunition, $61,800 cash, cocaine, fentanyl and other drugs, police said.
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Bhatti, whose girlfriend Lynda Marques was fatally shot on Sept. 10, 2022, was already facing drug possession charges following his arrest in June for possession of cocaine and oxycodone, court records show.
Justice of the Peace Anne-Marie Tymec granted Bhatti bail Monday following a one-day hearing held last Wednesday where the crown had opposed his release.
Bhatti’s sureties, two relatives and his fiancé, pledged a combined $35,000, and he also agreed to pay $15,000 if he violates his release conditions that include not possessing any weapons or contacting his three co-accused from the two cases.
Bhatti must be fitted with a GPS-monitor bracelet before he is released from the Sarnia Jail, where he has been in custody since his arrest on Nov. 8. He was ordered to live with his two relatives and not leave the home for any reason except medical and legal appointments while accompanied by one of his sureties. Only family members are allowed to visit Bhatti.
Wearing an orange prison jump suit, Bhatti spoke briefly Monday.
“Yes, your honour,” he said when he was asked whether he understood the terms of his release conditions.
The case returns to court Dec. 20.
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