Judge ‘reluctantly’ sentences repeat drug dealer to six months in jail following plea deal

Alliston drug dealer Darryl Berdan will be spending the next six months in jail, after pleading guilty to possession of cocaine for the purpose of trafficking.

The sentence was handed down in a Barrie, Ont. courtroom by Justice Angela McLeod, who ‘reluctantly’ accepted the joint sentencing proposal from the Crown and defence.

Berdan, 41, was arrested several times between 2024 and 2025, and had been out on bail up until a few weeks ago, when he was arrested for failing to show up to court on several occasions, prompting his lawyer to drop him as a client.

• Alliston man arrested for alleged drug trafficking twice in two weeks

The court heard Berdan, who has a lengthy criminal record, accepted responsibility for a Nov. 2024 traffic stop in Alliston, when the vehicle Berdan was in was pulled over by police for having obscured licence plates while driving along Young Street at 10 p.m.

Police said the Mitsubishi was searched and the officer found about $4,000 in cash along with 71.8 g of cocaine and more than 20 g of methamphetamine.

Having previously sentenced Berdan five years ago, Justice Angela McLeod was not impressed with the latest proposal from the lawyers of the six-month jail term. The judge told Berdan he clearly had not turned his life around since vowing to do so when he was convicted of similar charges.

• Alliston man with lengthy criminal record, released from jail for ignoring release conditions

Both Berdan and his younger brother Kody, 37, faced gun charges last July, that were dropped by the prosecution. Kody Berdan was released from jail in February after seven months in custody for breaching bail conditions and violating a probation order. He also pleaded guilty last year to an aggravated assault, when he admitting to breaking a man’s fingers over a debt owed.

• Alliston, Ont. man accused of weapons charges sentenced for aggravated assault
• Recent charges withdrawn against brothers facing outstanding drug trafficking and weapons allegations

Darryl Berdan, who also goes by the name ‘Kenny,’ told the court of his struggles with substance abuse. Justice McLeod warned the drug dealer that his life “is in jeopardy” and careers of drug dealers are often “short lived.” Justice McLeod remarked, “You don’t often see 50 and 60-year-old drug dealers.”

Before being led away in handcuffs, Justice McLeod wished Berdan good luck, telling him, “You’re playing a dangerous game.”

Upon his release from custody, Berdan is also banned from having weapons on him for life.