(JENNIFER STAHN / iNFOnews.ca)

A 25-year-old Kamloops man was already banned from carrying guns when RCMP caught him with loaded handguns twice last year.

Cameron Jaykob Deakin-Robertson will be taken to a federal penitentiary after pleading guilty to four criminal charges in BC Supreme Court.

He appeared in Kamloops court via video from custody today, July 10, where Crown prosecutor Anthoney Varesi said Deakin-Robertson already had a lifetime firearms ban before he was caught by police.

In the first of two incidents in May 2022, Deakin-Robertson was caught in North Kamloops when someone called police about a suspicious vehicle, Varesi said. He was slumped over in the vehicle and police found a stolen 9mm handgun with dozens of bullets in the vehicle. He also had brass knuckles.

Deakin-Robertson was spotted the next month outside the Crossroads Inn in downtown Kamloops by a passing police officer.

The Mountie saw a baseball bat in Deakin-Robertson's backpack and tried to arrest him for carrying a weapon for a dangerous purpose, suspecting he wasn't playing baseball, the court heard. He tried to run, but was caught after two officers chased him down.

Police found brass weapons, including brass knuckles, a .22 restricted firearm with a silencer and .22 ammunition. They also seized 93 grams of fentanyl, 38 grams cocaine, 27 grams of crystal meth, around $1,600 in cash and a "score sheet" to tally drug deals from his bag, Varesi said.

The drugs would have a combined street value of around $5,450.

Deakin-Robertson's previous conviction landed him in jail for two years and he'd been banned from possessing firearms three times already.

The first was a five-year ban, then ten years, and in 2022 he was given a lifetime ban of owning guns, court heard.

"But for his drug addiction, he wouldn't be in the situation he's in right now," defense lawyer Dustin Gangon said. "He turns to gambling, he turns to drugs, and it's a cycle he's trying to break."

Justice Dennis Hori accepted the 8.5 year sentence, which was a joint submission from both Crown and defense.

Deakin-Robertson will be in prison for seven years after he was given credit for 575 days already in custody.

"I hope you take advantage of your time in federal custody to improve your addiction, and hopefully upon your release you will become a productive member of society," Horri said after delivering his sentence.

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