Canadian soldier faces jail over feeding cannabis cupcakes to troops

A Canadian soldier who fed cannabis cupcakes to her fellow troops during a live firearms exercise could now be sentenced to five years in prison.

Bombardier Chelsea Cogswell was found guilty of administering "a noxious thing" to eight soldiers, as well as behaving in a disgraceful manner.

Soldiers had described feeling drunk and confused while handling weapons after eating the cakes in 2018.

The crime occurred three months before cannabis was legalised across Canada.

Military Judge Cmdr Sandra Sukstorf announced the decision on Wednesday.

She said prosecutors had proved beyond a reasonable doubt that the affected soldiers had eaten cannabis from the cupcakes, which the bombardier knowingly gave them.

The bizarre case stems from an incident at the Combat Training Centre at CFB Gagetown in the province of New Brunswick.

Prosecutors in her military trial argued that Cogswell added more peril to an already dangerous situation when she handed out the chocolate cupcakes while in charge of the canteen during a field exercise.

Soldiers testified to feeling "spaced out", "incoherent", "paranoid", and "sluggish" after eating the homemade treats.