KELOWNA – The prosecutor concedes a man sentenced Tuesday for ‘very serious’ firearm and drugs offenses got a good deal despite his 14 previous criminal convictions.
Anthony James Graham, 30, was sentenced to three years imprisonment in a plea bargain arrangement, which the judge acknowledged is on the low end of the scale for similar offenses.
On January 6 a Kelowna Mountie pulled over a Mercedes SUV in a routine stop.
During questioning, Graham become hysterical and ran away carrying a large duffle bag.
He was tackled and arrested with the help of two civilian witnesses, but not before he kicked the female officer numerous times in the face and upper body.
Inside the bag and the vehicle were a loaded pistol with a matching silencer and a loaded semi-automatic rifle. The serial numbers had been removed from both guns.
Police also seized ammunition, an oversize magazine, a silicone face mask, body armour, a large hunting knife and two sets of hand-cuffs.
Crown Counsel, Ashleigh Baylis, told the judge the only conclusion from the items is the potential for Graham’s involvement in serious violence.
Along with the weapons, RCMP also found 34 grams of fentanyl, 96 grams of crystal meth, 98 grams of crack cocaine, 48 grams of powdered cocaine and $2250.
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Defence lawyer, Stan Tessmer, blamed Graham’s crimes on his addiction to heroin and crystal meth, saying his client desperately needs treatment and may be suffering from permanent, drug-induced psychosis.
Graham apologized to his family and the court, saying he feels absolutely horrible about everything. The Midway man claims he never intended to hurt anyone but was getting threats from people he was afraid of.
In handing down the sentence, Provincial Court judge Lisa Wyatt noted the potential for someone to be injured or killed during Graham’s arrest was significant.
At the time, Graham was serving a conditional jail sentence for an earlier conviction for possessing a restricted weapon in Alberta.
He was also under supervised release imposed by a Spokane judge for a firearm offense in Washington state for which he received a 23 month jail sentence.
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