A photo of Stewart Wayne Tkachuk provided by police.

Image Credit: Vernon RCMP

It was midnight and James Jurica and his then-girlfriend Candice Kado were awake and lying in bed at their rural Lumby home when two men, armed with a shotgun and with masks pulled over their faces, broke in.

Edward Scott Coghill and Stewart Wayne Tkachuk then shot out the power to some of the lights and barged into the bedroom.

Jurica was shot in the chest stomach and hip with shotgun pellets and Kado swung and hit one of the men with a baseball bat.

The shotgun was reloaded and fired again. Kado ended up with a fragment lodged in her chin. Jurica was beaten with a metal bat. The couple then had their hands zip-tied together.

With a shotgun pointed at Jurica, the house was ransacked before Kado was ordered down to the basement to open up a safe.

The "prolonged and senseless attack" lasted about 45 minutes, BC Supreme Court Justice John Gibb-Carsley said.

Coghill and Tkachuk stole about $1,000, two e-bikes, jewellery and the couple's TV before making off with Jurica's Dodge Ram truck.

Today, April 14, five and a half years after the attack took place, Coghill and Tkachuk appeared at the Vernon courthouse listening to how much time they'd spend in prison.

"Given the violence and use of weapons against them, I expect that there was no certainty in the minds of Mr. Jurica or Ms. Kado whether they would survive that evening," Justice Gibb-Carsley told the court.

The Justice took the time to comment on the couple's actions.

"Ms. Kado, in my view, acted in a manner that was nothing short of heroic. She defied her captors' orders not to move in order to tend to the wounds of the very injured Mr. Jurica by getting him towels and something to drink. Her bravery in the face of the home invasion is remarkable," Justice Gobb-Carsley said.

"Mr. Jurica also exhibited great courage in the face of adversity during the home invasion. When the offenders stormed the house, Mr. Jurica attempted to defend himself, Ms. Kado and his house by rushing at the offenders, despite them firing shotguns at him. He attempted to fight and resist Mr. Coghill and Mr. Tkachuk, despite being outnumbered and demonstrated bravery in what must have been a terrifying circumstance."

The justice highlighted the "deep and profound" impact the "horrifying" attack had on the couple calling Jurica's victim impact statement "jarring."

The Justice said Jurica's wounds had still not fully healed and constant burning in his chest from the nerve damage caused by being shot. He'd developed blood clots in his leg and now could not fly, which prevented him seeing family.

He's unable to work and is now on disability. The relationship between the couple broke down after the attack.

"I have lost so much, my sense of self, my dreams, my partner, my life as I knew and hoped it to be," Jurica said in a victim impact statement read out by the justice. "He had to leave the house he had called his dream house because of the thoughts of the home invasion. He describes that since the crime, he has become withdrawn from his family members, and cannot see a time in the future when he will have healthy relationships."

The couple had been running a cannabis grow operation on the property at the time of the attack. Following the attack police opened an investigation into the grow-op but nothing came of it.

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Both Coghill, 50, and Tkachuk, 53, have lengthy criminal records, although both contain significant gaps.

Coghill had lived in Vanderhoof and worked and raised three children after he separated from his wife. His wife had later died from a fentanyl overdose and he had also struggled with opioid addiction.

Six months after the attack, Coghill had stabbed a "friend" outside a gas station in Vernon, while in the throws of his addiction. He'd received a 16-month jail sentence.

He'd been sober since November 2020 and was described as a "completely different man" now.

"(His) criminal behaviour is strongly tied to his substance use," the justice said, noting he had strong family support.

Less was heard about Tkachuk's life but he had also struggled with substance abuse but had been sober for more than a decade.

In 2014, he was diagnosed with bone cancer which was currently in remission. Over the years he'd had multiple surgeries and treatments and was left in constant pain. He'd had fingers amputated and has difficulty using his hands.

Tkachuk's last violent conviction was in 2012, and he'd spent years working full-time installing insulation.

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Citing a planned and orchestrated attack, Crown prosecutor Brock Bellrichard called for between 16 and 19 years jail.

However, Justice Gibb-Carsley said that was excessive.

Defence lawyer Dominique Verdermann argued Coghill should do eight years, while defence lawyer Claire Mastop said Tkachuk's should do 10 to 11 years.

Ultimately, the Justice sentenced Coghill to 11 years jail, but will have eight months reduced from time already served in custody.

Tkachuk was sentenced to 12 years, minus roughly 15 months for time already spent behind bars.

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