21571 replies to this topic

[pontcanna]

Woman who hit 11-year old Saanich girl with car granted full parole with conditions

Tenessa Nikirk, the woman who was driving and hit then-11-year-old Leila Bui, leaving her with life-altering injuries, has been granted full parole with conditions.

 

 

Nikirk was found guilty of dangerous driving causing bodily harm after she struck Bui in the crosswalk on Ash Road at the intersection of Torquay Drive on the morning of Dec. 20, 2017. The crash left Bui with severe brain damage.

The conditions of her parole include that she has to attend regular sessions with a mental health professional, she is not permitted to drive and she is not allowed to be in contact with Bui or the family.

The parole board noted that before this case, Nikirk did not have a criminal record, but she had previously been sent a warning letter that someone driving a vehicle registered in her name was driving aggressively and tailgating, and she had three prior driving violations for speeding and four unpaid fines related to administrative suspensions.

Additionally, she received a speeding ticket in July 2019, after the crash where she hit Bui.

“Your file states that you are incredibly remorseful and traumatized by the collision and that you demonstrate a high level of remorse for the victim,” the parole decision says.

In the parole hearing, Nikirk’s family, her partner and her institutional parole officer support of full parole.

During the parole hearing, Nikirk testified that the time leading up to the crash was stressful.

The ruling notes that Nikirk referred to the crash as an “accident.”

“The Board recognizes that your offence caused catastrophic and life changing injury to a young girl and altered the course of her family’s life forever. The extent of the harm you caused cannot be overstated,” the ruling says. “However, the Board’s role is not punitive. The Board must follow the law, which is to make the least restrictive determination consistent with the protection of society.”

Her plans are to live in the lower mainland with her mother and her partner.

 

More: https://www.cheknews...itions-1079679/

 

[pontcanna]

VicPD investigating after suspicious dumpster fire damages Cook Street hardware store

 

 

Victoria police are investigating a dumpster fire, believed to be arson, that damaged a downtown hardware store early Sunday morning.

VicPD officers were called to the 1700-block of Cook Street at around 4:45 a.m. to find a dumpster on fire next to Castle Building Centre.

Residents living in apartments above the store were forced to evacuate their homes as flames began to spread to the building.

“This is believed to be an arson and we are continuing our investigation,” a VicPD spokesperson said.

 

More: https://www.cheknews...-store-1079772/

 

[pontcanna]

Single mother’s murder in Langford a case of mistaken identity, court hears at sentencing

The man who fatally gunned down a single mother at a Langford duplex in March 2020 thought she was somebody else, according to an agreed statement of facts presented at his sentencing hearing Monday.

 

Anthony Singh Dheensaw, 38, pleaded guilty to the second-degree murder of Angela Dalman last month.

Dheensaw entered court smiling at family members Monday, wearing thick black glasses. Family and friends of Dalman’s were visibly upset, some crying, as he walked in.

 

Angela Dalman

 

Details that were not yet known about Dalman’s murder were revealed in an admission of facts at the hearing, including the fact that he mistook the single mother for another woman when he fired fatally shot her.

Dheensaw had been staying with Derrick Oke and Kelly Groves, who were living at the duplex located at 845 Arncott Ave. in Langford.

On the morning of March 6, Dheensaw, who had been doing large amounts of cocaine, was asked to leave because Oke and Groves were moving. When he didn’t leave, Oke enlisted friends to remove him from the house, some of whom assaulted him in the process.

He left the home at 5 p.m. and returned to a trailer he was previously staying at, located at 2500 Florence Road, and told the person he was staying with Ronald Brand, that he’d been robbed of drugs, jewelry and money. At some point, he took a rifle from the main bedroom of the trailer and left with Brand, who lived in the trailer, at 9:22 p.m.

Dheensaw admitted that he mistook Dalman for Groves because they had a similar stature, hair colour and length, firing two shots at her, the second hitting her right shoulder and causing her to fall to the ground.

Oke came outside moments later, and Dheensaw fired twice at him, missing him both times.

Oke then ran through the back of the house, grabbed a knife, saw Dalman and began to provide CPR, while his friend fled the scene on foot. Dalman was rushed to hospital, arriving at Victoria General at 9:57 p.m., but showed no signs of life as she arrived and was declared dead.

The gun used in the shooting has not been located to this day.

Crown and the defence have jointly submitted a sentence of life with no parole for 14 years, and for an attempted murder charge against Oke that Dheensaw pled guilty to, they’re asking for nine years.

Dheensaw’s defence says this tragedy is two-fold.

Garen Arnet-Zargarian told the court that Dheensaw was a hard working pipefitter who’d managed to buy his own property, spending days working, nights and weekends studying at Camosun and BCIT to further his education.

Aside from a few brushes with the law, Arnet-Zargarian says everything changed for Dheensaw in the spring of 2014 when he started experiencing symptoms of multiple sclerosis.
 

More: https://www.cheknews...encing-1079678/

 

[Victoria Watcher]

He’s also had an extensive criminal history, convicted of 16 crimes including four violent offences, including assault of a police officer, and was under conditions to abstain from alcohol and drugs as well as a firearm ban at the time of Dalman’s murder.

 

DHEENSAW’S PERSONAL HISTORY

 

Dheensaw’s defence says this tragedy is two-fold.

 

Garen Arnet-Zargarian told the court that Dheensaw was a hard working pipefitter who’d managed to buy his own property, spending days working, nights and weekends studying at Camosun and BCIT to further his education.

 

Aside from a few brushes with the law, Arnet-Zargarian says everything changed for Dheensaw in the spring of 2014 when he started experiencing symptoms of multiple sclerosis.

 

“He was powerless to prevent the erosion of his physical and cognitive health,” said Arnet-Zargarian.

 

Unable to find a mix of drugs that worked, his family believes he turned to street drugs to cope, specifically cocaine. Between 2017-2019 the family believes Dheensaw’s usage progressed to full blown addiction and selling.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Well that might be a bit of a stretch to say he turned to cocaine to "prevent the erosion of his physical and cognitive health”  when he was "unable to find a mix of drugs that worked".  

 

But it least it's 2nd degree murder he's being convicted of here.

 

 

 

 

 

Both Crown and the defence have jointly submitted a sentence of life with no parole for 14 years, and for an attempted murder charge against Oke that Dheensaw pled guilty to, they’re asking for nine years.

 

 

 

 

Considering that he also violated his "conditions to abstain from alcohol and drugs as well as a firearm ban at the time of Dalman’s murder" he certainly should have at least the the 14-year parole ineligibility period.

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 22 August 2022 - 04:11 PM.

[Victoria Watcher]

Assault With Weapon Under Investigation

Date: Monday, August 22, 2022

File: #22-31829

Victoria, BC – VicPD officers are investigating after a youth was assaulted with a weapon in Victoria on Saturday night.

Shortly before 11 p.m. on Saturday, August 20 th , VicPD officers responded to the 2200-block of Victor Street for a report that a youth had been assaulted with a weapon during a party. Officers arrived on scene, where over 100 youth had gathered in the street during the party. Officers located the victim, who was suffering from serious but non-life-threatening injuries. The youth was transported to hospital for medical treatment.

The investigation remains ongoing. There have been no arrests. Officers are asking anyone with information about this incident to contact police.

If you have information about this incident, please call our Report Desk and (250) 995-7654, extension 1. To report what you know anonymously, please call Greater Victoria Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.

 

 

 

 

The Victoria Police Department is investigating after a youth was assaulted with a weapon Saturday night.

 

On Aug. 20, just before 11 p.m., VicPD was called to the 2200-block of Victoria Street for a report of a youth assaulted during a party, according to a news release.

 

Officers found more than 100 youth gathered in the street. They located an injured youth who was taken to hospital suffering injuries described as serious but non-life-threatening.

 

 

 

https://www.vicnews....han-100-people/

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 22 August 2022 - 05:51 PM.

[Victoria Watcher]

The mother of a then-11-year-old girl who suffered a severe brain injury when she was hit in a Saanich crosswalk by a speeding SUV in 2017 says she is stunned the driver was granted full parole.

 

In a decision released by the Parole Board of Canada, the board said Tenessa Rayann Nikirk, 25, has accepted responsibility for the crash that severely injured Leila Bui and understands the harm she caused.

 

During her time in prison, the board said, Nikirk demonstrated positive behaviour, had no security incidents, and completed programs with good results.

 

“We’re quite shocked that she got full parole — we’re still processing [it],” Leila’s mother, Kairry Nguyen, said in a phone interview. “I don’t think she has learned anything.”

 

Leila suffered severe brain damage, a fractured neck and lacerated spleen when she was hit and thrown 26 metres while crossing Ash Road at Torquay Drive on her way to school on Dec. 20, 2017, ending up wedged under an oncoming car.

 

Doctors said Leila would “be a vegetable, non-functional,” said Nguyen, but following two more surgeries in the spring, she has made small advances, “and that’s all we can hope for right now.”

 

 

https://www.timescol...-parole-5727619

 

 

After Nikirk’s appeal was denied and she began serving her sentence in January, Nguyen thought a message was being sent to “reckless and irresponsible” drivers. That’s now undermined by the decision to give her full parole, she said.

[pontcanna]

Langford man sentenced to life in prison for murder of single mother

The man accused of killing a Langford mother in a case of mistaken identity has been sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole for 14 years.

The court listened to 12 victim impact statements from Dalman’s family and friends, many of whom fought tears as they described the devastation caused by her death.

“Without any doubt, Miss Dalman was an individual whose character earned her the love, respect and admiration which shone through the victim impact statements,” B.C. Supreme Court Justice Catherine Wedge said Tuesday.

Wedge accepted a joint submission from Crown and defence, imposing a nine-year prison sentence on Dheensaw for the attempted-murder conviction.

The judge found the most important mitigating fact to be Dheensaw’s guilty plea.

“True remorse and acceptance of responsibility are demonstrated not by words, which come easily, but by a plea which removes any hope of acquittal and accepts a very significant punishment which will take away Mr. Dheensaw’s prime years of his life,” she said.

The judge noted that Dheensaw’s downward spiral began in 2015, after he was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. He was also the victim of an unprovoked stabbing that left him seriously injured. After the stabbing, his dependence on cocaine turned into a pronounced addiction.

By November 2019, at the age of 35, despite working hard as a sprinkler fitter and returning several times to school, he faced the reality he might never be able to maintain a career. He had no job, no career prospects and his health relapsed. Despite seeking treatment for his addiction, by late February 2020, he was using cocaine and alcohol regularly.

“The tragic events of March 6 followed,” said the judge.

Outside court, defence lawyer Garen Arnet-Zargarian said Dheensaw is sincerely remorseful for his actions.

“His guilty plea and this judgment indicate that acceptance of responsibility and his sincere desire for the community to heal.”

 

More: https://www.timescol...-mother-5732268

 

[Nparker]

If he's paroled after 14 years it's hardly "life in prison". Our legal system is a joke.

[Victoria Watcher]

Probably lucky it’s not manslaughter. If we believe she wasn’t really the target, it could have been plead down to that. And sometimes that’s only 3-7 years before parole.

[Nparker]

The fact is SOMEONE was his target. It's a pretty s****y defense to say "I didn't mean to kill this person, I was planning on killing someone else. "

[Victoria Watcher]

I don’t think he ever admitted to trying to kill anyone.

[Nparker]

He seems to have admitted to pointing a gun at someone and firing it.

[pontcanna]

 

[pontcanna]

TWO YOUTHS ARRESTED IN CONNECTION TO ASSAULT ON TRANSIT BUS

August 23, 2022 - File #22-15810

Saanich Police are looking to identify five suspects from a group that assaulted a youth on a transit bus last week.

On Thursday, August 18, 2022, just after 12:30 a.m., a group of seven youths were on a BC Transit bus heading southbound on Shelbourne Street near Cedar Hill Cross Road. Two youths from the group walked to the back of the bus and attacked a youth sitting with some friends. Other youths from the group filmed the assault, the video of which was later shared on a social media platform. The victim was taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

Investigators were able to identify and arrest the two youths who committed the assault and are recommending charges of assault causing bodily harm. Although the victim and the two facing charges were not known to each another, police believe the incident stemmed from an interaction at a bus stop about an hour and a half prior.

“This is a disturbing incident, one that was unprovoked and it is clear that the group had planned and coordinated the assault on the bus,” said Cst. Markus Anastasiades.

Officers are looking to identify the remaining five youths who were on the bus that evening.

Anyone with information about the youths or the incident is asked to contact the Saanich Police at 250-475-4321. You can also report what you know anonymously through the Greater Victoria Crime Stoppers at 1-888-222-8477.

Cst. Markus Anastasiades
Public Information & Communications Officer

 

[pontcanna]

UPDATE: TWO YOUTHS ARRESTED IN CONNECTION TO ASSAULT ON TRANSIT BUS

 

August 24, 2022

 

Investigators have been able to identify the five youth who were sought in this investigation. All of the youth involved voluntarily came forward and contacted police yesterday. While none of them have been charged with any offence at this time, the investigation remains open and active. Their photos have now been removed from the original media release.

 

[pontcanna]

Port Hardy RCMP looking for man wanted on multiple warrants

2022-08-24 - File #2022-2728

The Port Hardy RCMP are requesting the public’s help in locating Martin Dubitski who is wanted for assault with a weapon, possession of a weapon/ammunition contrary to order and possession of a weapon for a purpose dangerous to public peace.

The most recent heavy police presence on the Gwaʼsala-ʼNakwaxdaʼxw Nations was because of the incident that Dubitski is accused of being a part of.

Martin Dubitski has an extensive criminal record and is believed to be actively evading police.

Dubitski is known to travel between Port Hardy and Campbell River, and has ties throughout Vancouver Island.

 

 

Martin Dubitski is described as:

    * First Nations male
    * 38 years old
    * 190 cm (6’ 3)
    * 104 kg (230 lbs)
    * Brown eyes
    * Black hair
    * May have a goatee
    * Several tattoos, including on both sides of his neck

If located, call 9-1-1, the RCMP or the police of jurisdiction in your area. Under no circumstances should you confront or try to apprehend Martin Dubitski. He should be considered armed and dangerous.

If you have any information about Martin Dubitski, or where he might be, please contact the Port Hardy RCMP at 250-949-6335.

Released by

Sgt. Chris Manseau
District Advisory NCO (Media Relations)
Lower Mainland District

 

[pontcanna]

Salt Spring Island home searched by RCMP in firearms investigation

Aug. 24, 2022

 

 

Mounties will maintain an increased presence near a home on Salt Spring Island after executing a search warrant at a property in a firearms investigation.

Members from Salt Spring RCMP and other sections of the BC RCMP used specialized vehicles as well as a police helicopter in the warrant execution Tuesday night, which was conducted without incident, officials said in a news release.

They added that locals on the island likely would have noticed the large police presence, centered on a home on Stewart Road.

One person was arrested who has since been released and no charges have yet been recommended to the BC Prosecution Service, according to RCMP. Police say there was no threat to the public during the warrant execution.

No names or further details will be released in the investigation, said Manseau.
 

More: https://www.cheknews...gation-1081168/

 

[pontcanna]

Unlicensed B.C. masseur convicted of sex offences gets stay of proceedings due to trial delay

The accused, who was 65 years old at the time of the alleged 2017 offence, offered massage treatments out of a facility in the basement level of his home in Victoria

Aug 24, 2022

An unlicensed Vancouver Island masseur who was convicted of sexually assaulting two of his female patients has received a stay-of-proceedings after arguing his trial was unreasonably delayed.

 

 

John Thomas Heintzelman pleaded not guilty to the offences that were alleged to have occurred against one of the women between June and December 2013 and on July 2, 2017, for the other woman.

The accused, who was 65 years old at the time of the alleged 2017 offence, offered massage treatments out of a facility in the basement level of his home in Victoria.

Each complainant described unwanted sexual touching by the accused during a hot stone treatment in which each was lying naked on a treatment table.

At his first trial, Heintzelman gave evidence and denied that he touched either complainant in a sexual fashion.

In December 2018, provincial court Judge Ted Gouge concluded that he was unable to decide who to believe and acquitted the accused.

The Crown appealed the verdict and, in September 2019, the B.C. Supreme Court allowed the appeal and ordered a second trial.

Following the second trial, provincial court Judge Mayland McKimm convicted Heintzelman of the two sex offences but then heard the application for the stay.

He noted that the 27 months was well in excess of the 18 month ceiling for trials in provincial court to be completed that was mandated by the Supreme Court of Canada.

“It is apparent that the court chose not to prioritize this retrial in favour of some matters which may have or might be set pending the leave application,” said the judge. “While I am sympathetic to the court’s analytical processes in making that decision, it is clearly contrary to the express direction trial courts have now been given around the need to prioritize retrials.”

“In this case I would go further and say that, even if I were satisfied that there were some exceptional circumstances that would suggest that this matter in fact was concluded in less than 18 months, it is still my view that Mr. Heintzelman’s right to be tried within a reasonable time has been abridged.”

More: https://vancouversun...-to-trial-delay

 

 

[pontcanna]

College rules against nurse who assaulted three seniors

 

• Times Colonist
• 25 Aug 2022

A former Victoria licensed practical nurse convicted of assaulting three residents of Selkirk Seniors Village in the spring of 2015 committed professional misconduct, a discipline committee of the B.C. College of Nurses and Midwives has concluded.

 

James Edward Christie fled Canada in July 2017 during the appeal of his convictions and of the six-month sentence imposed by the provincial court in November 2016.

 

From Google Images

 

Judge Lisa Mrozinski found Christie struck and used uninvited and unnecessary force against the three patients, who were bedridden and in advanced states of dementia in April and May 2015.

 

“You struck at the private parts of two of the victims, causing them obvious pain. You caused the third victim to moan when you pressed your torso into her face, which you had covered with a blanket,” Mrozinski said in her sentencing decision. “These acts were intentional, cruel and, quite frankly, sadistic in their nature. The residents you assaulted were the most vulnerable of an otherwise vulnerable population.”

 

Christie appealed his conviction and sentence a week later and was released from the Vancouver Island Regional Correctional Centre on Nov. 16, 2022. (?)

 

He did not report to Saanich Community Corrections on July 17, 2017, and on Oct. 10, 2017, a warrant was issued for his arrest. The warrant instructed police to arrest Christie and bring him before any judge in the province.

 

The B.C. Corrections Branch advised the discipline committee that Christie’s sentence has not been served. Christie’s appeal was eventually dismissed and the convictions upheld.

 

More: https://digitaltimes...281578064467175

 

 

[pontcanna]

See post #18440

 

Another indecent photo investigation

2022-08-23 - File #2022-26084

The Nanaimo RCMP is asking for the public’s assistance in identifying the individual shown in the attached photo. It is alleged that at approximately 2 PM on Friday July 29th, this person used his phone to take a picture up the skirt of an unsuspecting woman. The incident occurred in Walmart, located at 6801 North Island Highway, Nanaimo.

The complainant told police that she was shopping when she caught sight of the suspect who was bent down with his phone out and had it angled so that it was looking up her skirt. She yelled at the man, at which point he quickly walked away.The woman was startled and went to find staff to assist her. By the time she found an employee to assist her, it appears the suspect had left the store and could not be located.

 

 

Security cameras captured a poor quality image of the suspect, who is described as being a Caucasian man, muscular build, medium height and middle aged. The suspect was wearing a grey shirt with white letters on the front, a black cap, shorts and sandals.

If anyone has information on this incident, please call the Nanaimo RCMP non-emergency line at 250-754-2345, and quote file # 2022-26084.

Released by

Cst. Gary O'Brien
Media Relations Officer
Nanaimo RCMP