Two young men from the North Battleford area are off to federal prison for attacking and robbing two women who stopped by the side of a Saskatchewan highway to see if they needed help in late 2015.
Rocky Meechance, 22, and Cody Coyle Wuttunee, 21, pleaded guilty on Wednesday to charges including robbery with a weapon, which carries a mandatory minimum sentence of four years.
Judge Brent Klause accepted a joint submission from the Crown and defence, sentencing Meechance to six years and Wuttunee to four.
“The insane behaviour directed toward the two women that innocently stopped and offered their assistance is not only criminal but embarrassingly deplorable,” Klause said.
Kristen Alm (left) and Carolyn Benes were beaten and robbed when they stopped to help a group on Highway 16 whose SUV had rolled.
Court heard the women pulled over on Highway 16 near Clavet after seeing an SUV in the ditch around 3 a.m. on Dec. 19, 2015. One victim said she pleaded for her life when a rifle was pointed at her face.
The group, which included Meechance, Wuttunee and four youths, then stole the women’s car, leaving them beaten, terrified and stranded on the highway. Meechance, who was driving, then led police on a high-speed chase from Saskatoon to North Battleford, reaching speeds up to 210 kilometres per hour.
The crime spree began hours earlier, when the group left North Battleford in the stolen SUV and spent the night stealing various items, including a rifle, from acreages near Saskatoon. They then got into an armed confrontation with a property owner near Clavet who fired a warning shot into the air.
“The aggravating factors come close to disbelief,” Klause said, noting the men considered shooting the homeowner and endangered many lives during the highway chase.
Crown prosecutor Tamara Rock said the guilty pleas could have been a result of the Crown’s readiness to proceed with a trial, but they also spared the victims from having to testify. Klause commended the women for their “act of charity” and said he hopes they can now move on with their lives.
He also spoke of the strain this type of incident has on rural property owners who do not have access to quick 911 response times and are “increasingly arming themselves” for protection.
Court heard Wuttunee had no prior criminal record while Meechance had two prior convictions. Drugs and alcohol do not appear to be a problem and the explanation for the crimes remains unknown, Klause said.
Expressing regret at having to sentence such young men to federal terms, he said the offenders can either emerge from prison as informed members of society or as gang members with no future. He urged them to choose the former.
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