The “King of Xanax” remains in prison

Alexandre Beaudry, who hoped to regain his freedom during his extradition proceedings, is suspected of being responsible for millions of overdoses in the United States

Mayssa Ferah
The Press

Louis-Samuel Perron
The Press

The Quebecer suspected by the American authorities of being one of the drug traffickers responsible for the epidemic of opioid overdoses in the United States, will remain detained during the extradition proceedings, ruled the Superior Court Thursday. Alexandre Beaudry, the “King of Xanax”, faces up to 40 years in prison.

“I’m sorry, Mr. Beaudry, you leave me no choice,” Judge Eliane B. Perreault said while addressing the 32-year-old on Thursday at the Montreal courthouse.

Alexandre Beaudry would have built from Montreal a veritable empire of narcotics sales on the deep web (dark web) between 2016 and 2017, operating under numerous pseudonyms. In just a year and a half, the Montrealer would have earned hundreds of millions of dollars in bitcoins.

The alleged drug trafficker and his accomplices are believed to have sold more than 15 million counterfeit Xanax pills and other narcotics imported from China or manufactured in Canada in the United States, say US authorities. Alexandre Beaudry would have prided himself on being the “king of Xanax on the deep web” [Darknet Xanax Kingpin] on the famous Reddit forum, in February 2017.

US authorities allege that under the “reign” of Alexandre Beaudry as the head of a drug distribution empire, the United States suffered an epidemic of opioid overdoses. The Quebecer was trafficking extremely dangerous opioids, such as fentanyl and other substances that have led to countless overdoses in the United States, say the American authorities.

This portrait of a supernarco-trafficker seems a thousand leagues from the one painted by his relatives during the release hearing, that of a young “gentle and non-violent” sprayer who is “out of place” in prison. A publication ban lifted Thursday by the judge prevented us until then from reporting these testimonies.

His face distorted by emotion, Alexandre Beaudry sobbed silently in the dock while listening to his relatives testify on October 20.

“At one point, he went cycling to Varennes. Someone had told him: “If you have fears, you have to face them. He was 19 years old. He climbed on top of an icebreaker and threw himself down. He broke his heel. He has a literal version of things. For him, he was facing his fears, ”said a family member, who cannot be identified.

It was this serious accident that made his relatives realize that the “special” young man since childhood was on the autism spectrum. In front of the judge, the family of Alexandre Beaudry told at length how much Asperger’s syndrome had influenced his whole life. A diagnosis he resented. “He’s been in denial for at least 10 years,” one person said.

From an early age, Alexandre Beaudry was “naive and easily influenced”, a child “a bit special”, said a family member. Obsessed with computers and having very few friends, he “didn’t understand instructions well”. “He was always medicated,” she adds.

Increased computer knowledge

Alexandre Beaudry’s advanced computer knowledge was put forward by the Court to justify the decision to keep him in detention. The commission of new similar offenses is not to be ruled out, indicates the judge. He would thus have the ability to destroy evidence remotely if given access to a computer.

“The crimes were done through the internet. No restriction at the level of the Internet can be guaranteed by the defence”, ruled the court.

US authorities claim that Alexandre Beaudry is hiding a fortune in cryptocurrency and assets. A $1.7 million condo acquired without a mortgage, a $187,000 Tesla car, more than $1 million in investments and hundreds of millions of dollars in bitcoins, the judge summed up.

But according to his family, Alexandre Beaudry made quite a fortune selling books on the internet. “The family never questioned their sources of income. Their unconditional love clouds their judgment,” the judge explained.

If his release had been pronounced, Alexandre Beaudry would have been under the supervision of his family.

Since he could face American justice, he may never set foot on Canadian soil again. Shortly after the decision, relatives of the accused begged the judge to allow Alexandre Beaudry to leave the dock to hug him one last time.

In an outpouring of compassion, Judge Perreault was initially receptive to this exceptional request. The agent present, however, replied that “it was not in the procedures”, leaving Alexandre Beaudry to speak to his family from afar.

“It’s a death sentence!” He won’t get through! It is so not dangerous! “, shouted a relative – taking violent sobs – in the direction of the judge.