Disgraced former Saint John city councillor Donnie Snook was back in court on Thursday. The Crown is seeking authority to either destroy or sell some of Snook’s belongings.

Snook’s eastside home and camper have been under a restraining order since he was arrested in January.

Electronics were also seized by police, including a laptop computer, BlackBerry and iPad supplied to him by the city.

A court process is now underway to determine what should happen to items now in the control of authorities.

The court heard that some of the items in question were used by Snook to commit crimes against children.

“If items are used in the commission of a crime then they shouldn’t go back into general use,” says Snook’s lawyer, Dennis Boyle.

Snook’s SUV has already been taken back by Ford.

It is expected that most of the electronics, such as laptops and cameras, will eventually be destroyed. However, Snook’s house and camper could eventually be sold with the proceeds going into government coffers.

Coun. Gerry Lowe, who replaced Snook on Saint John Council, says the money should go back into the city’s south end.

“If there’s money available, instead of shipping it somewhere we don’t know where it goes, it would be nice to put it into the south end, where the damage was done, and it was a lot of damage done,” says Lowe.

There are two liens against Snook’s house and it is unclear how much the government could gain by selling the property.

The city has no objection to the items being taken by the Crown.

Snook is not fighting the seizure, sale or destruction of any item, with one exception.

The court was told that Snook may need some photo albums which might be used as evidence to support allegations that he was sexually abused as a child.

Last month, Snook was sentenced to 18 years in prison for abusing his position of trust to sexually abuse and make pornographic images of boys for 12 years.

The former youth worker pleaded guilty in May to 46 charges including sexual assault and possessing, distributing and making child pornography.

His crimes, which began in January 2001 and went on until his arrest in January, involved 17 boys, most of whom were from the Saint John area and between the ages of five and 15 at the time of the offences.

Snook also faces two counts each of sexual assault and sexual interference involving a boy for alleged incidents in the mid-1990s in Newfoundland. He is due back in Saint John court at the end of November to face the charges.

Boyle says Snook intends to plead guilty to the charges. He also says charges are only transferred from one province to another if the accused agrees to plead guilty.

With files from CTV Atlantic's Mike Cameron