Photo by Curtis Galbraith

By Curtis Galbraith

Court

Not guilty verdict in Peace River stabbing case, updates from Grande Prairie court

Nov 27, 2019 | 4:30 AM

Alberta Justice says the trial of a Peace River man charged in a double-stabbing has ended in a not guilty verdict.

Steven Daniel Phair was found not guilty of two counts of aggravated assault and one of possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose Friday in Peace River court.

RCMP said at the time that at around 2 a.m. on December 17, 2016, they had been called to a liquor store after two men who said they were stabbed went to the store looking for help.

The two, one from Beaumont, the other from Nova Scotia, were taken to Peace River hospital at first before being taken to Edmonton and Grande Prairie. They were treated and later released.

Phair was the subject of a Canada-wide warrant issued in January after he did not show up for his original trial, which had been scheduled for October of 2018.

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Jail time for suspect in police chase

Alberta Justice says a Hythe man has been given a two-year jail sentence after an incident last October that involved a police chase and stolen vehicles.

Credit for time served means Matthew James Bergeson has 112 days left to serve after pleading guilty to charges of possession of stolen property, dangerous driving, and flight from police.

Grande Prairie RCMP were called to the Webster area on October 10, 2018, after a report of a vehicle stuck in a ditch.

The people in the vehicle left on foot and were later seen leaving the area on a quad. That machine and the vehicle turned out to be stolen.

The suspect later fled in another stolen truck and a chase ensued that ended with the suspect truck hitting two police vehicles near Bonanza.

The suspect and a 16-year-old girl were taken in by police.

At the time of his arrest, Bergeson was already wanted on charges that included arson and robbery. A stay of proceedings was put in place for those charges in August.

This all came after he served a jail sentence after shots were fired towards patrons of a west end business in July of 2016 and a police chase ensued. The firearm was found in a backyard by two children. No one was injured in that incident.

Preliminary hearing in Spirit River-area incident

A preliminary hearing will be held in June for a man arrested by Spirit River RCMP after an incident in October 2018 that involved gunfire and stolen vehicles.

Ian Preston Letendre is facing over two-dozen charges.

Spirit River Mounties were called out on October 12 last year after getting a call about a trespasser leaving a property and later firing shots from a handgun at the vehicle being driven by the person who called the police.

The suspect then went to another yard, tried to steal another vehicle that still had a child still in the back seat. The suspect and another man ended up exchanging gunfire before the suspect left on foot.

No one was injured.