A former correctional officer has been found guilty of two counts of possession of a controlled substance – Ritalin – for the purpose of trafficking.

Yukon Supreme Court Justice Ron Veale handed down his decision Monday afternoon.

He also ordered that a pre-sentence report on Michael Gaber be done before a sentencing hearing is held.

Veale explained his verdict in detail, noting the issue came down to evidence around the testing of the drug.

The matter goes back to Dec. 26, 2013, when Gaber’s boss searched him after he arrived at the Whitehorse Correctional Centre, where he worked as a guard.

A total of 59 pills were seized that were later identified as Ritalin.

In reviewing the evidence from the trial, Veale recalled evidence by the RCMP that the pills were put into an evidence locker, with 10 pills sent away to a Health Canada laboratory.

Sarita Jaswal works at the lab and analyzed one of the pills sent in.

Jaswal determined it contained methylphenidate, the active ingredient in Ritalin and a schedule III drug under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act. She used three tests to confirm the drug as Ritalin.

Throughout the trial, Gaber’s defence took issue with the testing, first arguing against the RCMP’s handling of the pills, then the methods used to test it.

The RCMP officer did not wear gloves and did not have a clean surface on which to prepare the pills when they were sending them out for testing.

The defence argued that other substances could have gotten on the pills and affected the testing resutls.

The methods used at the lab saw the substance of the pill run through testing equipment and compared to Ritalin which was purchased as a comparison.

Suzanne Perry, another expert in drug analysis, appeared for the defence.

She argued that other testing methods – including an infrared test – should have been used to confirm the substance of the pill.

In his decision, Veale addressed the arguments presented by the defence.

He noted the lab analyst for Health Canada did not take any issue with how the pills were handled by the RCMP.

He said it’s highly unlikely there would be any major impact on the pill’s substance from the handling by the RCMP.

Meanwhile, Veale also noted the lab where the testing was done has met all the regulatory requirements to be a certified as a lab, and the tests done on the pill exceeded the minimum requirements.

He concluded that the pills were indeed Ritalin.

Consequently, he found Gaber, who was attending the court session by phone, guilty on both counts.

A pre-sentence report was ordered, with June 21 set as the next court hearing to fix a date for sentencing.