Playboy centrefold and 'World's Sexiest DJ' jailed for helping smuggle boyfriend through Akwesasne
A former Playboy centrefold and “World’s Sexiest DJ” was sentenced to four months in jail this week for helping smuggle her Canadian boyfriend and convicted cocaine trafficker through Akwesasne and into the U.S.
(Colleen Shannon/Facebook)
By Jorge Barrera
APTN National News
A former Playboy centrefold and “World’s Sexiest DJ” was sentenced to four months in jail this week for helping smuggle her Canadian boyfriend and convicted cocaine trafficker through Akwesasne and into the U.S.
Colleen Shannon, who lives in Los Angeles, was sentenced Tuesday and will begin serving her prison term on Dec. 3, according to court documents filed U.S. federal court.
Shannon’s boyfriend Robert Skojo is currently under investigation by the RCMP and U.S. authorities for smuggling cocaine from the U.S. into Canada, according to court documents. Skojo was initially denied entry into the U.S. in 2003 as a result of several criminal convictions in Ontario, including for living on the avails of prostitution and trafficking cocaine.
“This case is not, in fact, a purely innocuous story of a boyfriend and girlfriend who were divided by an international boundary,” wrote U.S. Attorney Richard Hartunian, in his sentencing submission to the court. “It is the story of a convicted narcotics trafficker whose girlfriend engaged in complex machinations to facilitate his entry into and transport within the United States, including by lying to border patrol agents and driving the defendant’s vehicle over the border while he entered unlawfully.”
The two began dating in June 2011 after Skojo hired Shannon to DJ a party he was hosting, according to court documents. Their love affair evolved over the next few months as Shannon regularly travelled to Toronto to visit Skojo. The two talked about living together, but Skojo’s criminal record kept him from moving to Los Angeles. Then, in September 2011, Skojo was referred by a friend to someone who could help him get into the U.S. illegally, but he initially balked at the idea.
Then, on July 2012, Skojo decided to make his move and he planned to enter the U.S. through Akwesasne, a Mohawk community which straddles the Canada-U.S. border and sits about 120 kilometres west of Montreal.
According to court documents, Shannon flew to Toronto in August of that year to help Skojo get through the Canada-U.S. border. On Aug. 15, Skojo packed two suitcases and drove his 2005 Bentley with Shannon to meet a contact named “Jerry” at a Toronto gas station. They followed Jerry to Cornwall, Ont., crossed the bridge to Cornwall Island and met with an unnamed person there to arrange for the crossing.
Shannon left Skojo on the island then drove through U.S. customs. Skojo was then ferried across the St. Lawrence River from the island to the U.S. shore, which is still within Akwesasne. They planned to meet at the Great View Motel, just outside Akwesasne.
Shannon, however, ran into problems while answering questions from U.S. customs and was put into secondary inspection where she was found to be carrying $9,800 in cash, most of it in $100 bills. Shannon claimed the money came from her work as a DJ. She also told border agents she was a model. The search also turned up Skojo’s luggage.
The border agents eventually let her go, but contacted agents with Homeland Security Investigations. She was followed to the Great View Motel where she checked in and awaited for Skojo who slipped into the hotel without being detected by the agent who had the place under surveillance.
The two spent the night at the hotel and left in the morning driving Skojo’s Bentley. They were soon stopped by border agents and arrested. During questioning Skojo admitted he was smuggled across the border through Akwesasne.
Skojo was sentenced to six months in federal prison last December and fined $1,000.
He is “currently the target of a significant narcotics trafficking investigation,” according to Sgt. Frank Gougeon, with the RCMP’s serious and organized crime section, court documents show.
Shannon agreed to deal and pleaded guilty to transporting an alien through the U.S.
She is scheduled to spin the Playboy Mansion’s Halloween party.
She was the centerfold for Playboy’s 50th anniversary edition in 2004.
@JorgeBarrera
