Coqutiam RCMP says a man who was unlawfully at large from the Forensic Psychiatric Hospital, commonly known as Colony Farm, has been located.
Christopher Thomas Askey, 51, was reported overdue on a day pass from the facility just after 7 p.m., Saturday, and police were seeking him on a warrant under the Mental Health Act, according to police.
“Askey may behave in a way that presents a risk to (himself) or the public, so if you see Askey, police ask that you do not approach him and instead call 911,” said RCMP in a media release.
Colony Farm houses some of B.C.’s most notorious offenders who have been found not criminally responsible due to mental illness or declared mentally unfit to stand trial.
Court records show Askey has previous convictions for assault with a weapon, assault causing bodily harm and robbery.
In 2019, he was the subject of a similar RCMP notice after failing to return to Colony Farm on a day pass. Askey was at large for a week before police took him into custody.
At the time the hospital’s medical director for forensic psychiatric services told Global News Askey was deemed a “very low-risk” patient when he was granted a day pass.
Askey is described as Caucasian and six feet tall with a heavy build. He has short, greyish hair, a light goatee and brown eyes, and was wearing a black jacket, black pants a blue shirt and white and black shoes.