A 30-year-old citizen from the United Kingdom has been sentenced to 20 days in jail after pleading guilty to a charge of shop-breaking.
Lee Andrew Pilling appeared in Athabasca Provincial Court July 23, where he was due to stand trial on this charge, as well as for break and enter. Pilling had originally pleaded not guilty on both charges. The second charge, along with separate charges of shoplifting, possession of a controlled substance, and failure to attend court, were withdrawn by the crown.
Crown prosecutor Marissa Tordoff told the court that in Sep. 2017, police responded to a break-and-enter at the Husky Energy Plant in Athabasca County, where two suspects were able to get inside. It was also alleged that a battery was stolen from the premisis.
Tordoff said that police were able to identify Pilling as one of the assailants from surveillance footage. She added that the suspect, when questioned, did admit to breaking in, but denied being the one who stole the battery.
The court also heard that Pilling did have a criminal record, albeit a recent one. Tordoff said on March 28, Pilling received a $500 fine for a theft, and had missed five prior court appearances, in which he was charged $50 for each offence.
The 20-day sentence, which was mutually agreed to between Tordoff and defence council Richard Forbes, was approved by Judge Larry E. Nimersky, along with a $100 victim surcharge. And as Pilling had already been in custody since March 20, his sentence was considered to have been served in full.
Tordoff said the 20 days was on the lower end of what the crown would usually go for, but pointed out that deportation proceedings were underway for the defendant.
Forbes had said that Pilling had originally come to Canada on a work permit, which has since expired.
