Crown to downgrade murder charge for suspect in Rocky View County roadside shooting

By Staff The Canadian Press

Posted October 10, 2024 2:01 pm EST

1 min read

WATCH ABOVE: (Sept. 14, 2024): Thirty-eight days after a shocking highway shooting near Calgary that left one person dead and another injured, RCMP have brought a major manhunt to a conclusion. “Today, just after 1 p.m., members of the Alberta major crimes unit successfully and safely arrested 28-year-old Elijah Blake Strawberry at a residence in O’Chiese First Nation,” Alberta RCMP Chief Supt. Roberta McKale told reporters at a news conference in Edmonton late Friday. Skylar Peters reports – Sep 14, 2024

The Crown will be downgrading the murder charge for one of two men arrested after a deadly roadside shooting near Calgary in August.

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Arthur Wayne Penner, 35, was originally charged with first-degree murder and attempted murder.

But the prosecution has indicated in court Penner will now be facing trial on second-degree murder instead.

The second suspect, Elijah Blake Strawberry, 28, was arrested at a residence in O’Chiese First Nation last month and charged with second-degree murder and attempted murder.

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They were caught after a manhunt that began Aug. 6 following the fatal shooting of one man and the wounding of another who were working along a roadway in Rocky View County, east of Calgary, when a county truck was stolen from the scene.

The two men, who will be tried together, will be back in court Oct. 17.