A man convicted of groping a woman on a North Vancouver trail in 2022 is facing new charges and it appears he may be seeking an ankle monitor to secure his release from custody.
Jairus-Paul Covacha Sacramento, 24, was arrested at gunpoint on Feb. 11 near a Highway 1 on-ramp in Burnaby, according to witness Christopher Woudstra.
Woudstra said he and his wife were on their way to a Super Bowl party just after 3:40 p.m., and waiting for the light to change at Canada Way and Kensington Ave. to get onto the freeway on-ramp.
“We saw Sacramento’s Mercedes coupe take a quick left off Canada Way toward Kensington northbound and immediately after taking the turn, six to seven cruisers cut him off and surrounded his car,” said Woudstra in an email.
“An officer jumped out, drew his firearm, and pointed it at Sacramento.”
The pair then observed Sacramento being escorted to an RCMP vehicle and placed in the back.
Woudstra said he recognized the suspect because he’d seen Sacramento leaving court in the same black vehicle in a Global News story last year.
“I believe he’s even wearing the same outfit as in one of your segments,” Woudstra added.
Burnaby RCMP said officers were conducting speed enforcement near Deer Lake Parkway and Royal Oak Avenue on Feb. 11 when an officer attempted to pull over a vehicle believed to be speeding.
In an email, Cpl. Mike Kalanj said the suspect driver fled the traffic stop and struck an officer with his car mirror before he was arrested.
The officer who was struck by the car’s mirror was not injured, said Kalanj.
Sacramento, who is currently under house arrest on a conditional sentence order for sexually assaulting a woman on a popular Lynn Valley trail two years ago, has been charged with dangerous driving, assaulting a peace officer with a weapon, flight from police, and breaching his conditional sentence order.
Sacramento remains in custody ahead of a Feb. 29 appearance in Vancouver Provincial Court for a Technical Suitability Report, which is ordered by the court prior to imposing electronic supervision release conditions.
“It’s a combination of a technological assessment, an assessment of the consent of the others in the house, and looking at whether or not the accused has in the past complied with these orders,” said criminal lawyer Ravi Hira, K.C., who is not connected to the case.
According to the B.C. government website, electronic supervision is most suitable for high-risk individuals “who need intensive supervision due to a substantial concern they will commit a serious, violent, or sexually motivated offence.”
In December, Sacramento was handed a six-month conditional sentence order followed by 18 months of probation for the Feb. 2022 sexual assault. He was to serve the first three months under house arrest in Maple Ridge.
Sacramento was accused of breaching his conditional sentence order on Jan. 3, Jan. 4 and twice on Jan. 8 in Maple Ridge. On Jan. 18, the BC Prosecution Service said he admitted to the first two breaches and was sentenced to 19 days in custody while the Jan. 8 breach charges were withdrawn by Crown counsel.
Sacramento is also scheduled to appear in Port Coquitlam Provincial Court on Feb. 26 on allegations he breached a release order in Maple Ridge last August.
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