In the case of a Hamilton police officer arrested for helping drug dealers, the crown is following the money.

A forensic accountant testified today that 44-year-old Detective Sergeant Craig Ruthowsky made over $130 000 more than he earned in just a few years. Ruthowsky faces charges that include bribery, cocaine trafficking and breach of trust.

The crown alleges Craig Ruthowsky took $20 000 a month in payment from a drug dealer, in return for the promise of information to help the dealer and his friends avoid arrest.

Forensic accountant Lisa Gordon investigated the Ruthowsky family finances and found that their net worth increased unusually between 2011 and 2015, when Ruthowsky was arrested. She found an average of $20 000 a year in unexplained income and an average of $16 000 in spending, more than the family should have been able to afford. In total, the income from unknown sources from 2011 to 2015 was more than $130 000.

Ruthowsky’s lawyer suggested that income was from the construction and pool building work his client did on the side, including $10 000 for building his in-law’s basement.

Court also heard today from two officers who worked with Ruthowsky. One who had helped arrest the dealer right before he became an informant for Ruthowsky and was then disturbed to find that dealer looking for Ruthowsky at the scene of a grow op bust in Stoney Creek in October 2011. She was told the dealer wanted to make sure Ruthowsky was holding up his end of their bargain.

The second officer was part of an undercover sting operation. She broke down in tears on the stand, recalling the dangerous situation in late 2011. She was in the midst of her story when court ended for the day, so she’ll be back up tomorrow but it’s expected that court will hear that her identity was compromised by the information Ruthowsky was passing to his so-called informant.