The province’s highest court reserved its decision Tuesday on whether to grant a man’s request to have his conviction and sentence — including his dangerous offender designation — overturned.

Donald Francis Wilton, 39, was not present at the Saskatchewan Court of Appeal as his lawyer Kevin Hill argued his case.

Wilton was convicted in November 2012 of break, enter and commit sexual assault, Queen’s Bench Justice Guy Chicoine determining Wilton broke into the home of a 13-year-old girl in the summer of 2008 and touched her sides while lying on top of her in his underwear.

Wilton was linked to the incident through DNA found on the clothing left behind.

After he was found guilty, the Crown launched dangerous offender (DO) proceedings, pointing to Wilton’s lengthy criminal record which includes — with the sex assault factored in — 25 convictions related to violent or threatening behaviour.

At the end of January 2015, upon the completion of a hearing, Wilton was deemed a dangerous offender and handed an 8½-year prison sentence, to be followed by eight years community supervision. After receiving credit for remand, he was left with three years, nine months custody going forward.

On Tuesday, Hill argued the verdict was unreasonable, claiming the evidence does not support the conviction. Hill also urged the court to toss out the DO designation on the grounds that the sentencing judge erred in finding the sex assault — Wilton’s first conviction for this type of offence — fits a pattern of previous violent, criminal behaviour.

In terms of the prison sentence, Hill argued the judge erred by effectively tacking on time after considering Wilton would receive parole or statutory release that could start before programming is completed or has taken effect. Hill argued the finding was not backed by evidence when looking at the low numbers of dangerous offenders who statistically receive either form of release.

Hill asked the court to consider imposing a shorter sentence in the range of two to three years — the amount originally requested by defence.

But Crown prosecutor Dean Sinclair argued the verdict was reasonable, that the sex assault does fit into an overall pattern of general violence committed by Wilton, and that Chicoine did not err by taking the possibility of parole or statutory release into account when sentencing.

Sinclair said he is aware of instances in which offenders have received early release while midway through programming — a potentially significant issue given that programming was deemed necessary to help manage Wilton’s risk once released.

hpolischuk@postmedia.com

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With a string of beatings, robberies, and stabbings on a Regina man’s record, both sides agree he’s a dangerous offender (DO), but they differ on how he should be sentenced.

The Crown and defence made closing arguments Tuesday at the protracted DO hearing for Anthony Joseph Slippery. It began more than a year ago but met with several delays.

Last month, testimony was reopened after Slippery, 36, overdosed in February on crystal meth while in custody. Crown prosecutor Roger DeCorby argued it was further proof that when Slippery hits a rough patch, he falls into his old ways of abusing substances — putting him at risk of committing violence.

“I’m not suggesting he’s evil. I’m suggesting he’s incapable of controlling his behaviour,” said DeCorby. He’s seeking an indeterminate sentence, which would keep Slippery locked up — subject to periodic parole reviews — until he no longer poses a danger.

Feeling hopeless about his “grim future,” Slippery had testified he was intent on killing himself that day but changed his mind and sought out guards. For defence lawyer Kevin Hill, the incident shows Slippery is willing to reach out for help.

“It’s important to assess treatability,” said Hill. He argued Slippery, who has already spent the past 4 1/2 years in custody, should receive a further three years in prison followed by a 10-year intensive supervision order.

Regina Provincial Court Judge Anna Crugnale-Reid has set Oct. 3 for sentencing.

The Crown launched its DO application after Slippery was convicted of assault causing bodily harm for stabbing a man in the face on Feb. 19, 2012. The Crown said the weapon was a pen; Slippery testified it was a syringe.

As his DO hearing was looming, Slippery repeatedly pummelled a fellow inmate in a gang-initiated attack on June 7, 2014 at the Regina jail. 

Slippery committed his first violent offence in 1994, drunkenly chasing a stranger with a large knife. A year later, he stabbed his sister’s boyfriend in the head with scissors. In 1996-97, his record grew with robberies at a convenience store and a bar at knifepoint, and a small-town bank robbery during which three hostages were threatened with a piece of pipe. Nine days into his sentence, he and a fellow inmate severely beat a female guard with a rock in a sock. Within days of release, he stabbed a man in the chest. An assault on a woman followed.

In 2005 came what DeCorby described as “an extremely horrible assault.” Slippery beat his 74-year-old grandmother so severely, she suffered a broken hip and lost an eye. He beat two people in a bar after his release.

While psychiatrist Dr. Shabehram Lohrasbe expressed optimism about Slippery’s prospects for rehabilitation, he’s actually spent little of his adult life in the community, said DeCorby. And when he’s out, he re-offends.

Under a revised DO law, the judge must consider if something less than an indeterminate sentence (which used to be mandatory in such cases) will protect the public from serious personal injury.

Hill said the DO law is no longer reserved for the “worst of the worst anymore … It’s potentially the average.”

Despite Slippery’s record, Hill argued the judge must consider what Slippery can be in the future with the benefit of programs, maturity, and supervision. As someone abused in the residential school system, it’s no surprise Slippery has trouble with authority, he noted. “He has come a long way,” Hill added.

But DeCorby contended Slippery, who has been described as intelligent and engaging, has received an immense amount of programming over the years. Despite the insight he seems to have gained, he said, “Mr. Slippery can’t control himself, can’t control his drinking.”

bpacholik@leaderpost.com 

A dispute between neighbours over who owned an allegedly pilfered patch of grass has been resolved in favour of the accused.

Lam Tu Tran stood trial at Regina Provincial Court at the end of February on charges of theft and mischief, alleging he stole sod that sat on his neighbour’s property — half of a 12-foot-wide easement the complainant told the court she purchased from the city.

Court heard a workman employed by the complainant told Tran he was going to be putting up a new fence for the complainant a few feet over from the one sitting on her original property line. The complainant told the court she arrived home on April 20, 2015, to discover the sod on her side of the easement had been torn up.

Tran, her next-door neighbour, told the court he believed the lawn — planted by the previous owner of his home — was part of his property. He admitted taking the sod, believing it was his.

In his written ruling issued late last week, Judge Murray Hinds found Tran “misunderstood the correct boundaries of his property” when he bought his house and yard in September 2011, believing he owned what was actually the non-fenced city easement next to his actual property.

Through his defence lawyer Cloudesley Rook-Hobbs, Tran filed letters he received from the city in late 2011 which — as had also occurred with his neighbour — offered to sell him the easement. Tran provided a $500 deposit in January 2012 on the understanding he was to be sent an Agreement for Sale. In February, Tran was told his neighbour had also provided a letter of interest.

The situation with the city proved to be an evolving one, involving changing area to be sold and varying costs. Tran testified he eventually paid the city approximately $5,000 for what he termed “six feet” of land.

“Based on all the evidence before me, it appears that sometime in 2015 Mr. Tran probably purchased a parcel of land approximately 81 feet deep by 6 feet wide … from the City of Regina, more or less,” Hinds wrote, adding that Tran did not enter into evidence the Agreement for Sale respecting his purchase, or other evidence of the sale.

While that might be problematic in a civil proceeding, Hinds noted “there is no obligation for Mr. Tran to prove anything in a criminal trial.”

Hinds noted the Crown also did not file documents in relation to the complainant’s dealings with the city on the sale or evidence of her purchase.

Hinds found the Crown had not proven beyond a reasonable doubt the complainant owned the land in question at the time of the alleged offences, and therefore found Tran not guilty.

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At around 7:20pm on Tuesday police made their way to a business at the 1300 block of Broadway Avenue after getting reports of a robbery in which a male had entered the building and was stealing goods, before being challenged by a staff member.

The man in question then produced a knife, left the premises and joined two other waiting males outside. When police arrived, they searched the area and located three people fitting the descriptions given. The merchandise was recovered and three males were arrested.

Twenty-nine-year-old Luke Badger is charged with Robbery with Violence, Carrying a Concealed Weapon and Possession of Property Obtained by Crime under $5,000.

Eugene Worm, 36, is charged Robbery with Violence, Possession of Break-In Instruments, Failure to Comply with Probation and Possession of Property Obtained by Crime under $5,000.

A fifteen-year-old male youth who cannot be identified under the Youth Criminal Justice Act is charged with Robbery with Violence.

All three will be held in custody before appearing in court today at 9:30am.

Police are asking for assistance in locating two males who were reported to have robbed and assaulted a Dickie Dee ice cream vendor on the 1400 block of Cameron Street around 7 p.m. Tuesday night.

The 33-year-old man was working when two males allegedly approached his vendor bicycle, demanded cash and the bike, then physically assaulted him.

The two suspects escaped on foot when two bystanders attempted to assist the victim.

EMS attended the scene, and the man sustained non-life-threatening injuries.

No physical descriptions of the suspects are available at this time.

One day after what would have been his release date from jail, a 24-year-old man landed a two-year prison term for sucker-punching a fellow inmate during a disagreement over a table.

Dylan Ryder Paskemin had been serving a nine-month sentence at the Regina Provincial Correctional Centre for assault with a weapon and, on May 16, was less than one month shy of his release date.

Court heard a fellow inmate approached him on that date to share his table. Paskemin responded by kicking the chair out from under the other man.

The man walked away, but Paskemin followed, delivering one punch to the other man’s face from behind. While he landed only the one blow, court heard the damage was severe, fracturing the complainant’s jaw to the extent that the bone protruded through the gum and caused severe pain and swelling.

Paskemin appeared at Regina Provincial Court on Tuesday, where he pleaded guilty to aggravated assault.

Defence lawyer Tony Orlowski said his client had been looking forward to release and re-establishing a relationship with his four-year-old daughter when this incident unfolded.

Orlowski said his client had not imagined the single punch could have ended up inflicting as much damage as it did, adding a regretful Paskemin has since penned a long letter of apology to the complainant.

“He wishes he could take it back,” Orlowski said, adding his client, too, has suffered a broken jaw in the past and so understands the pain he caused the other man.

Crown prosecutor David Zeggelaar said given Paskemin’s record, nothing short of a federal penitentiary term was appropriate — a position with which Orlowski agreed when joining with the Crown to request a two-year prison term. Judge Murray Hinds noted that record includes not only the assault with a weapon for which Paskemin was serving, but convictions for aggravated assault, common assault and another assault with a weapon.

Hinds pointed out with a record like the one Paskemin is accruing, he should not be surprised if he ends up being a “flagged” offender — a term used for an offender the Crown is watching as a possible candidate for a long-term or dangerous offender designation.

“(This was) a most unfortunate day for (the victim), and for you as it turns out,” Hinds said in imposing the two-year requested sentence. “Obviously, you snapped.”

Hinds urged Paskemin to take advantage of programming while in prison in the hopes he can lead a less violent life in the future.

hpolischuk@postmedia.com

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A man has been exonerated of a sexual assault that was reported in Regina on June 1.

After two weeks’ investigation, Regina police said Thursday the allegation of sexual assault was unfounded.

As a result, “the male involved in this interaction will not face sexual assault-related charges in connection with this incident.”

Police said a 23-year-old woman reported a man followed her into the west alley of the 1800 block of Scarth Street and sexually assaulted her before being scared away shortly after the incident began.

“The alleged victim provided a description of the suspect, which assisted police in identifying and locating this male individual,” police said in a news release issued Thursday.

“However, subsequent investigation produced objective, independent evidence which indicated what was described to police in the original report, was not accurate,” it added.

“This evidence, in fact, exonerated the alleged suspect.”

The police news release went on to say that “every report of a sexual assault is taken seriously by police and investigated thoroughly.”

“It is important to remember that each incident is regarded as a unique event with its own set of circumstances. The outcome of this investigation has no bearing on other reported incidents of sexual assault, or any implications for future reports of sexual assault.

“The fact that this allegation was false does not make a general statement about other allegations of sexual assault. The Regina Police Service continues to encourage any victim of crime to come forward to report to police.”

The police service news release did not give any other details.

wchabun@postmedia.com

While the province’s highest court has opted to increase a man’s sentence for sexually assaulting his daughter, it declined to set a specific starting point for sentences for “major sexual assaults” against children.

A man — 49 at the time of his 2014 sentencing — received a three-year sentence at Regina Court of Queen’s Bench, having been convicted of sexually assaulting his teenaged daughter over the course of three years. In asking for a five-year sentence — a request renewed on appeal — the Crown pointed to, among other factors, the fact the man was believed to have assaulted the girl hundreds of times.

Additionally, the Crown asked the Saskatchewan Court of Appeal to establish a four-year starting point for sentences in major sexual assaults against children. Crown prosecutor Dean Sinclair referenced case law from other jurisdictions, including Manitoba, where the starting point for such crimes sits at four to five years. Sinclair also pointed to the three-year starting point already established in this province for major sexual assaults against adult victims.

In a split decision handed down this week, the majority of the five-judge panel increased the offender’s sentence from three to four years, but decided against granting the Crown’s request for the new starting point — finding any starting point in this area is problematic.

“The broad results of this approach are unsatisfactory,” wrote Chief Justice Robert Richards, referring to case law in which the three-year starting point has been used in cases involving child victims. “We now have a situation where there is often little, if any, difference between the sentences imposed on offenders who engage in a single act of sexual assault on an adult victim and offenders who, as parents or persons in positions of trust or authority, sexually abuse a child either just once or multiple times over an extended period. In other words … both kinds of offences are tending to yield the same sentence even though, on any meaningful measure, assaults against a child should normally warrant a stronger sanction.”

The majority decision went on to say sentencing decisions in Saskatchewan “have tended to inadequately recognize the gravity of a sexual assault against a child as compared to a sexual assault on an adult,” despite the fact an assault on a child is considered an aggravating factor in sentencing. 

The majority — which also included Justices Maurice Herauf, Peter Whitmore and Jacelyn Ryan-Froslie — found sentencing is best left to the trial judges who have heard details of the case and can then weigh the case’s unique circumstances in coming to a fit sentence.

For the lone dissenting judge, Justice Georgina Jackson, that was why she did not join with her colleagues in increasing the offender’s sentence. While she termed the man’s actions “revulsive and base,” she found the trial judge’s reasons for sentence contained no error that would allow the appeal court to interfere.

“I fully acknowledge that it is difficult for an appellate court to express its denunciation of a crime as heinous as this and then express deference,” she wrote. “The natural tendency of an appellate court is to want to increase the sentence. But, in my view … the Court should defer to the sentencing judge’s exercise of discretion in this case.”

Jackson was in agreement with her fellow judges in terms of dismissing the offender’s conviction appeal.

The offender in this case cannot be named as it would serve to identify the complainant.

hpolischuk@postmedia.com

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A committee the Saskatchewan government struck to review domestic violence deaths will begin work next month.

The panel will review three to five cases this summer as part of a pilot run, and produce a report later this year.

Then, it will review all closed cases occurring between 2005 and 2014, with a final report identifying commonalities, possible programming and funding changes, and other recommendations by fall 2017. In that time frame, the government recorded 48 domestic-violence homicides and nine related suicides.

Over the past 20 months, the province has seen 11 domestic homicides and three suicides.

“We have the highest rate of domestic violence in the country and certainly we need to look to see what root causes there are, what we can do to help reduce those rates,” said Minister of Justice Gordon Wyant.

On Thursday, the government announced a preliminary list of six panel members, including the chief coroner, a prosecutor, and an aboriginal resource officer for victims services. Members from the RCMP, municipal police and other organizations are still being confirmed.

Mary Aspinall, a domestic violence worker with Family Service Regina, said she was interested in being a panel member to explore this issue on a wider scale than day-to-day dealings with victims.

She finds Saskatchewan’s domestic violence death statistics “shocking” and said, “hopefully this review will bring some more awareness and attention to that,” as well as identifying improvements for preventative measures.

The provincial government has been criticized that its poverty reduction strategy, released earlier this year, says a comprehensive strategy on domestic violence will be developed “when the province’s fiscal capacity allows.”

“I think the position that we’ve taken as a government, notwithstanding what was said in that particular report, we certainly haven’t backed away from providing resources to help domestic violence,” said Wyant.

He highlighted the opening of a transition house in Melfort earlier this week, and pointed to legislative changes and public awareness programs. The government is investing $11.4 million in this budget to support family violence and sexual assault services.

Wyant added “to the extent that there’s programming enhancements that are going to be recommended by this committee we’ll do our best to make sure that we finance those.”

NDP MLA Nicole Sauaer, though, thinks there are low-cost measures that could be implemented before the panel comes back with recommendations. She offered examples from other provinces, such as legislation allowing domestic violence victims to break leases without penalties and take leave from work.

– With files by D.C. Fraser

nlypny@postmedia.com

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A Regina man accused of playing a role in a deliberately set fire at a house under construction — resulting in extensive damage to two additional houses — will stand trial on arson and conspiracy charges.

A preliminary hearing wrapped up at Regina Provincial Court on Friday for 32-year-old Bradley Stanley Krall, when defence lawyer Bob Hrycan told the court his client was consenting to committal to stand trial on the charges.

A date for the trial, to be held in front of a Court of Queen’s Bench judge and jury, has not yet been set.

Details of evidence heard at the preliminary hearing cannot be reported because of a court-imposed publication ban.

A second man, Jeremy Myles Schopf from North Battleford, previously pleaded guilty to arson for a fraudulent purpose and received an 18-month jail term for, among other unrelated offences, his role in the 2010 incident.

At the time of his sentencing in May 2015, court heard the fire was an ill-fated attempt to deal with a construction mistake.

Schopf, a carpentry apprentice said to have been working for Krall at the time, admitted to setting the blaze. During sentencing submissions for Schopf, court heard Krall’s company was acting as a subcontractor for the framing of the second storey of a house on Brookview Drive, but that something went wrong that meant construction couldn’t be completed.

Court heard that, following some debate, Krall’s company agreed to pay for the labour while another company was to look after supplies.

It was alleged Krall asked his employee to set fire to the house — a move that would leave insurance companies footing the bill — and drove Schopf to the house on Aug. 13, 2010.

Court heard Schopf, using a jerry can of gas, lit a fire on the first floor but narrowly escaped, later telling investigators his pants nearly caught fire.

The fire ended up not only destroying the house in question, but caused extensive damage to two neighbouring houses. None of the homes were occupied at the time.

Damage was estimated at $600,000.

hpolischuk@postmedia.com

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A long-term offender with a record a Crown prosecutor termed “truly remarkable and rather abhorrent” will find out later this month how much time he will receive for breaching his long-term supervision order.

Crown prosecutor Adam Breker told the court it was “no small surprise” 52-year-old Keith Earl Papequash was designated a long-term offender, having been sentenced 17 times for violence — including a manslaughter from 2002 and, from the same date, an aggravated assault. The record also contains a break, enter and commit aggravated assault, armed robbery, five assaults causing bodily harm, four common assaults, uttering a threat, and several weapons offences.

“It doesn’t take much more than a perusal of that record to realize its rather astonishing scope and significance for violence, and it has been essentially completely continuous since 1980,” Breker said, adding the only substantial breaks seem to be when Papequash has been locked up.

Breker added Papequash also twice violated his statutory release for his most recent sentence and committed a further assault while on release.

In May, Papequash avoided a further serious conviction when he was acquitted by a Regina jury of a charge of aggravated assault pertaining to an incident from July 26, 2015 that left a 43-year-old man with a severe head wound.

The morning after that incident, Papequash met his impending arrest by swigging from a bottle of alcohol in full view of police — the breach for which he is now to be sentenced.

In arguing for a sentence in the range of 18 months to two years, Breker told Justice Brian Barrington-Foote that Papequash remains “an extreme danger to the public,” in part because his alcohol-related breaches — such as this latest one — contribute to one of his risk factors.

But defence lawyer Christopher Funt urged the judge to impose a lesser sentence in the range of four months to one year, telling the court his client has been making more progress than the Crown is giving him credit for.

“He is upset at his conduct,” Funt said, suggesting a lengthy jail term is likely to cause a setback to his client’s continuing rehabilitation.

In terms of the breach in question, Funt said Papequash was anticipating being arrested for aggravated assault — an offence that, if convicted, could have lead to a dangerous offender designation and an indeterminate sentence — and so opted to drink.

“This is akin to the last cigarette before the firing squad,” Funt told the court.

Barrington-Foote will decide sentence on June 28.

hpolischuk@postmedia.com

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Charges have been laid in the 2008 disappearance of 43-year-old James Carlson of Watrous.

Taylor Wolff, a 31-year-old man from Saskatoon, has been charged with second-degree murder in the death of Carlson. The location of Carlson’s body is still unknown.

A call made to the Watrous home of James’ parents, Marilyn and Allen Carlson, was answered but no one wished to comment. 

Mid-afternoon on Friday, Betty Carlson hadn’t heard that charges had been laid in her nephew’s murder, but expected that the news of this would bring “terrible relief” to the family.

“Knowing almost for sure that your son is dead somewhere, but where – you don’t know,” Betty said. “You have no closure if you don’t know.”

On May 14, 2008, Carlson disappeared from the Watrous area under suspicious circumstances. He had been working on a farm that day and had planned to work on another farm in the area the following day.

Carlson was seen later that evening at a local video store between 7 p.m. and 8 p.m. That was believed to be the last-known sighting of Carlson. 

The last time James’ mother Marilyn saw him was on May 11, Mother’s Day, when he came by to bring a card, hug and a kiss for his mother.

On May 20, 2008, an examination of Carlson’s residence in Watrous revealed evidence to support the belief that Carlson had been killed. 

While it was believed Carlson was the victim of foul play, it wasn’t until Friday that an arrest was made, when Wolff was taken into custody near Moose Jaw. Wolff will appear in Saskatoon Provincial Court on Monday at 9 a.m.

RCMP Insp. Karen Munro announces Taylor Wolff, 31, of Saskatoon, is charged with one count of second-degree murder in the death of James Carlson during a news conference at F Division in Regina on Friday. TROY FLEECE / Regina Leader-Post

In 2010, Carlson’s vehicle was located on a rural property near Watrous, and was examined by the RCMP Forensic Identification Section.

“It was reported to police by the landowner, who said the car had sat abandoned at the location for two years,” RCMP Insp. Karen Munro said Friday.

In 2013, the RCMP Historical Case Unit created a YouTube video that revealed details about the case, and asked landowners and farmers to check for any sign of remains or suspicious activity.

The ordeal of James’ disappearance has put a toll on the family for the past eight years. 

“It has taken a number of tolls – health wise, mentally and physically – it’s not been good,” she said. “I can’t imagine how they’re feeling right now.”

As it is an ongoing investigation, Munro was unable to elaborate on details related to the investigation, or if the YouTube video provided any tips that led to the arrest. 

“Investigations each are individual, and the time it takes to find the evidence to support the charges is what is important,” Munro said. “In this case, it happened to be eight years.”

Munro hopes that the charges can help bring closure to Carlson’s family.

“It is because of the dedication and persistence of investigators that charges have now been laid,” Munro said. “In these types of situations, our hope is always to give some hope to the family so they can say goodbye to their loved ones.

With an arrest in the books, there is the hope that Carlson’s body will be found. 

Carlson left behind three daughters and a son. 

— with files from Pamela Cowan

cbaird@postmedia.com

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Police in Regina responded to a report of gunshots being fired at a house early Saturday morning. 

At 6:11 a.m. police arrived at a house on the 800 block of Garnet Street, according to a news release.

They discovered the front window of a house had been shot out. The residents were home at the time of the incident but were not injured.

At this time no further information has been found but police continue to investigate the incident.

Anyone with information is asked to call police. 

A woman in Regina was threatened with bear spray and then robbed early Saturday morning.

At 5 a.m., a 24 year-old woman was walking along the 1400 block of Robinson Street when four men approached her, according to a police news release.

One of the men pointed a can of bear spray at the victim and demanded she give them money. The woman was not injured during the incident. Police arrived shortly after, the release said.

The suspects are described as males aged 17 to 19 years old and were all riding bicycles at the time of the incident.

At this time no further information has been found but police continue to investigate the incident.

Anyone with information is asked to call police.

Two teenagers broke into Mosaic Stadium shortly after midnight on Thursday night.

Police were called to a break and enter in progress at Mosaic Stadium at 12:13 a.m. on Friday, according to a news release. 

Security staff had a male teenager in their custody. Police were told there was still likely another suspect in the stadium. Another male teenager was then arrested.

Police said one of the boys had stolen keys to the stadium earlier that night from the 1100 block of Albert Street.

A 14 year-old boy was charge with attempted break and enter, break and enter to commit theft and possession of property by crime. A 13 year-old boy was charged with attempted break and enter and break and enter and commit theft. The suspects appeared in Youth Court on Friday.

They cannot be named under the Youth Criminal Justice Act.

Three men and one woman have been charged with drug trafficking as part of an ongoing investigation by the Regina Police Service. 

On June 17, members of the Regina Integrated Drug Enforcement Street Team conducted a search of a residence on the 3900 block of Robinson Street, where a man was suspected to be actively selling drugs. 

The man was bound by a court-ordered condition to submit to a search of his residence on reasonable grounds. Police located a sizeable amount of cocaine, amphetamine and a small amount of marijuana. A significant amount of cash was also seized, as well as drug paraphernalia and several cell phones. 

Abdifatah Abdullah Hassan, 27, has been charged with possession of property obtained by crime under $5,000, two counts of possession of a scheduled substance for purpose of trafficking and two charges of failing to comply with recognizance. 

Omar Abidiaziz Issak, 29, has been charged with possession of property obtained by crime under $5,000, two counts of possession of a scheduled substance for purpose of trafficking and possession of a scheduled substance. 

Ahmed Abdirizak Dirie, 27, has been been charged with possession of property obtained by crime under $5,000 and two counts of possession of a scheduled substance for purpose of trafficking. 

Amina Max Koshin, 19, has been charged with possession of property obtained by crime under $5,000, two counts of possession of a scheduled substance for purpose of trafficking and possession of a scheduled substance. 

Hassan and Koshin are from Regina, while Issak and Dirie are from Edmonton and Toronto. All four made their first appearance at Regina Provincial Court on Monday morning. 

Yorkton Regional High School went into lockdown Monday afternoon when RCMP responded to a complaint of a male with a possible firearm inside the school. The lockdown was initiated at 1:45 p.m., and remained in effect for one hour. 

One youth received unknown injuries during the incident and was transported to hospital. The youth was not injured by the male with the possible firearm, and no firearms were discharged. RCMP reported that one replica firearm was seized at the same time. 

A male youth was taken into custody without incident, and no charges have been laid. The investigation is ongoing.

“At about 2:30 p.m. the RCMP advised to lift the lockdown and classes resumed,” said Quintin Robertson, acting director of the Good Spirit School Division. 

A hold-and-secure was also placed on Dr. Brass School and MC Knoll School, two elementary schools in Yorkton, at the same time. Both hold-and-secures were lifted when the lockdown was over.

“The hold-and-secure means students remain in the building,” Robertson said. “It wouldn’t be as dramatic as a lockdown.”

The lockdown happened quickly, with students secured in classrooms within a few minutes. 

“It can be implemented very quickly. If they are not in the classrooms, they can be in a secure area,” Robertson said. “It takes only a matter of minutes for it to be implemented.”

This is not the first time the school has had to respond quickly with a lockdown due to reports of a firearm. On June 4, 2015, three people were arrested after RCMP received word of someone carrying a handgun near the high school. 

Each year, Yorkton Regional High School implements three to six lockdown drills to rehearse for the type of situation that happened Monday.

“It is fairly common for schools to do it,” Robertson said. “After a lockdown, practising will probably increase.”

cbaird@postmedia.com

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A man with a lengthy history of property crime was handed a jail term on Monday for a fraud related to a series of stolen tailgates.

Reginald L. Cisek, 55, pleaded guilty at Regina Provincial Court to a range of offences, including defrauding local business Best Buy Auto Parts of $530 — the money the business paid him for tailgates later found to have been stolen.

Crown prosecutor Connie Hottinger said the Property Crimes section of the Regina Police Service was, in March, investigating the thefts of numerous tailgates that occurred over the course of a couple of weeks — including five tailgates and one bumper from a local business, Auto Gallery Inc.

The investigation hit a turning point thanks to a lucky find by an Auto Gallery customer whose new vehicle did not have a tailgate. The customer was able to find a tailgate that fit his vehicle during a visit to Best Buy Auto Parts.

The reason it fit, it turned out, was because that particular tailgate had actually been stolen from that vehicle — a fact determined by the Auto Gallery salesperson who retrieved the part for the customer.

The owner of Auto Gallery then went to Best Buy Auto Parts where further tailgates were found and subsequently returned, having been stolen from vehicles off the Auto Gallery lot.

Hottinger said Best Buy Auto Parts was not found to be in the wrong, noting those working with the business were co-operative upon realizing the parts in their possession were stolen.

Cisek also pleaded guilty to an attempted break-in at a local compound, a pair of theft charges related to stealing gas, and possession of a stolen Dodge Dakota truck used in the various offences before the court.

Cisek, a cocaine addict, told the court he was homeless at the time and committed the crimes as a way to support himself.

Judge Murray Hinds agreed to impose the sentence jointly requested by Crown and defence, handing down a 10-month jail term in addition to time spent on remand.

Hinds warned Cisek he will be looking at longer sentences should he continue with his current path of property crime.

Noting the “extensive” record, Hinds remarked, “I don’t know why it is you apply yourself with such industry to your thefts and break and entries and possessions of stolen property, but a man with your energy could obviously apply themselves in a different way.”

hpolischuk@postmedia.com

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A 25-year-old man has been accused of biting an eight-month-old baby.

Darrin Jamie Runns made his first court appearance on Monday, facing charges of assault causing bodily harm and breach of probation from a June 2, 2015 incident.

According to information from the Regina Police Service, officers were called to a house on the 1400 block of Garnet Street on that date for a report of an assault on a child. Police said the baby’s mother found a bite mark on the child’s back and believed it was related to an incident from the overnight hours when a domestic assault against her was reported.

Runns had been arrested that night in relation to the alleged assault on the child’s mother and was subsequently charged with that. The woman alleged he had bitten the baby sometime before that arrest.

An investigation was undertaken by members of the Family Services section, later resulting in the charge related to the baby.

A city police spokeswoman said she was unable to comment on details of the investigation as the matter is now before the court.

Runns is also facing a charge of being unlawfully at large from an intermittent sentence on Jan. 15, which he had been serving for two counts of breach of probation.

A Canada-wide warrant was issued and, on Friday, police looking for Runns located a man at a house on the 900 block of Retallack Street who initially denied he was Runns. Police confirmed otherwise and took him into custody.

The Crown opposed Runns’s release and his charges were set over to Wednesday.

hpolischuk@postmedia.com

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A 14-year-old Regina boy is facing  seven charges after a series of burglaries that took place between June 9 and 17. 

Three of the burglaries happened in garages in Harbour Landing. Two were on the 5000 and 5100 blocks of Snowbird Crescent, and another was on the 4700 block of Skinner Crescent. 

Another break-in occurred at home on the 2000 block of Elliot Street, and there was a forcible entry of a home on the 800 block of Robinson Street. The boy was also charged in connection with the theft of a vehicle. 

The boy, who cannot be named because he is a minor, has been charged with attempt break and enter house, theft of motor vehicle, possession of property obtained by crime over $5,000, three counts of break and enter and commit, and one count of forcible entry.

The boy made his first appearance at Youth Provincial Court on June 20. Police are still investigating similar events, which may be related.