First time offence results in jail time for Oyama man | iNFOnews | Thompson-Okanagan's News Source
Subscribe

Would you like to subscribe to our newsletter?

Current Conditions Mostly Cloudy  4.2°C

Penticton News

First time offence results in jail time for Oyama man

Image Credit: FILE PHOTO

PENTICTON - An Oyama man has been sentenced to more jail time for taking part in an attempted robbery last November.

Simon Kincolith Bell, 36, will serve an additional 160 days after sentencing in Penticton court today, Aug. 25, on one count of being unlawfully in a dwelling house and two breaches.

The charges stem from an early morning incident on Nov.11, 2015 in which Bell and two other co-accused showed up at the door of an Eckhardt Avenue apartment in Penticton, brandishing weapons and demanding $75 from the occupant.

Crown Prosecutor Ann Lerchs said police were notified by the victim shortly after the two men and a woman left the building.

Police were able to get descriptions of the three from the victim and other witnesses in the apartment building.

Around 9 a.m., a police patrol spotted two men matching witness descriptions and they were arrested. A search of a backpack revealed a black CO2 air pistol and a large, pipe-like flashlight.

The man with Bell claimed he’d been invited to a party by the woman involved. They went to the Eckhardt Avenue residence where he discovered the woman had organized the affair in order to collect a drug debt.

While on bail, Bell breached several conditions when police were called to Denny’s Restaurant to deal with a man sleeping in one of the restaurant’s booths. Police identified the man as Bell and a search revealed him to be intoxicated and in possession of knives and a crack pipe.

Bell had warrants issued for his arrest after he failed to show up for trial on May 17 when his two co-accused entered guilty pleas. He was picked up on June 20 and has been in detention since that time.

Lerchs asked Judge Gale Sinclair to consider a sentence of six to nine months for being unlawfully in a dwelling house and an additional 81 days for the breaches.

Defence lawyer Robert Maxwell said his client had no prior criminal record and his part in the incident being that of “having gone along for the ride.”

He said his client had begun drinking since age 10 and had some addiction issues to deal with, asking for a sentence of six months on the initial charge while accepting Crown’s submission on the breaches.

Judge Sinclair agreed with Maxwell, sentencing Bell to a total of 180 days for being unlawfully in a dwelling house and 81 days for the breaches.

Several other charges against Bell were stayed by the Crown.


To contact a reporter for this story, email Steve Arstad or call 250-488-3065 or email the editor. You can also submit photos, videos or news tips to the newsroom and be entered to win a monthly prize draw.

We welcome your comments and opinions on our stories but play nice. We won't censor or delete comments unless they contain off-topic statements or links, unnecessary vulgarity, false facts, spam or obviously fake profiles. If you have any concerns about what you see in comments, email the editor in the link above. 

News from © iNFOnews, 2016
iNFOnews

  • Popular kamloops News
View Site in: Desktop | Mobile