A man convicted of aggravated assault following a pair of incidents at an Inverness Co. First Nations community has had a date set for sentencing.
Police say officers responded to multiple 911 calls of a man being chased by two other men on Portage Rd. in We’koqma’q in Aug. 2019; that was followed by more 911 calls reporting a hit-and-run on Hwy. 105 in the area, which was related to the first incident.
They say the victim was taken to Inverness Consolidated Memorial Hospital with serious, but non-life-threatening injuries.
RCMP say they arrested two men and a woman at a home in the community.
Joshua Lindsay Paul, 27, and Robert Lindsay Paul, 36, both from Eskasoni, originally faced counts of attempted murder, aggravated assault, assault with a weapon and obstruction, with Joshua Paul also facing multiple breach charges; they made their first appearance in the case in Port Hawkesbury Provincial Court the day after their arrests.
A preliminary inquiry, which determines if there is enough evidence to send their cases to trial, was scheduled for Wagmatcook Provincial Court in February.
The Crown withdrew their attempted murder charges; the men eventually waived their rights to the hearing later in the day, and were committed to stand trial.
Their trial took place in June, with a verdict delivered in Port Hawkesbury Provincial Court in July; both men were found guilty of aggravated assault and not guilty of obstruction, while the assault with a weapon count was stayed.
Joshua Paul returned to court Friday; he had a March 12 sentencing date set.
Robert Paul was sentenced to two years and eight months in federal prison in July; with credit for time already served, he was left with 16 months remaining in his sentence.
He also received three years of probation, a lifetime ban on restricted weapons, and a 10-year prohibition on other firearms, with the exception for hunting for sustenance.
Jenilee Kaitlyn Francis, 20, of Eskasoni faced the same charges; she pleaded to aggravated assault, and had her remaining charges withdrawn in July.
She received a three-month conditional sentence and 12 months of probation at her sentencing hearing in October.
Police say the suspects and victim were known to each other, and it wasn’t considered a random act.
