Hamilton drug dealers continued to ply their trade in the days after Toronto police smashed a car window and seized two kilos of cocaine in the parking lot of Sherway Gardens mall. A jury heard more details of the surveillance of those dealers today, as the trial of Hamilton detective constable Craig Ruthowsky continued into its second week.

Police were watching when a brown Ford Taurus pulled into Sherway Gardens on May 22, 2015. They had been following since the car left a known drug dealer’s house in Hamilton and apparently exchanged drugs and money along the way. The dealer went inside the mall after a transaction and police moved on the vehicle, smashing the drivers side window. At first they didn’t find anything, although they’d seen the dealer put a heavy black bag in the back. Then a random, odd-looking strap led police to discover a hidden compartment behind the seat and there they found a lockbox that contained two kilos of cocaine, which they seized. Three days later, still following the group of drug dealers, police arrested another man and seized another two kilos of cocaine.

Police had what’s called a general warrant to anonymously search and seize drugs or drug-related items in the Taurus when it stopped at Sherway gardens, so they could continue to investigate during project pharaoh without tipping off the dealers that they were being followed.

The dealer’s phone was wire-tapped and police were listening when he called Hamilton police officer Craig Ruthowsky two days after the Sherway Gardens incident, to ask whether smashing and grabbing drugs was something police could do. That overheard conversation seems to be what led to Ruthowsky’s arrest during project pharaoh. He’s alleged to have been in a pay for protection scheme with one of the group of dealers and that dealer is expected to testify at this trial as early as Tuesday.