He’s probably best known as the chief prosecutor from the Air India trial where he prosecuted Inderjit Singh Reyat, the only man convicted in the 1985 Air India bombing.
Cairns calls himself "a fairly aggressive prosecutor" and he was unhappy with the acquittals of two of the men put on trial in the McMynn case. He says the testimony of Joshua Ponicappo’s girlfriend was disallowed by the judge simply because she used to be a drug user.
Sam Vu’s brother, Van Van Vu, was the other man acquitted.
The people who were in the house and arrested following the police raid in which Graham McMynn was rescued were Sam Vu, Joshua Ponicappo, Van Van Vu, Van Van Vu’s girlfriend Jennifer Nga Thai and Ponicappo’s girlfriend, who we can’t identify because of a court order protecting her identity.
Despite the acquittals Cairns has seen over his career he still thinks Canada's system of justice is the best system in the world.
Cairns retired in 2011 after 35 years as a prosecutor. He now spends time at Qualicum Beach with his family.
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