Crime
Lac La Biche RCMP and Eastern Alberta District Rural Crime Reduction Team arrest 10 in enforcement operation

Lac La Biche, Alberta – Between April 10, 2019 to April 12, 2019, the Lac La Biche RCMP and Eastern Alberta District Rural Crime Reduction Unit (EADRCRU), in conjunction with Cold Lake Police Dog Services (PDS) and EAD Criminal Intelligence, conducted operations in the Lac La Biche area which resulted in 10 arrests, search warrants being executed, the seizure of firearms and drugs, and the recovery of several stolen vehicles.
On April 10, 2019, EADRCRU and Lac La Biche RCMP located a stolen truck in a rural location South of Lac La Biche near Highway 36. Two individuals in a residence near where the stolen vehicle was located were wanted on outstanding warrants from Rocky Mountain House, Smoky Lake, Beaumont, St Paul, and Edmonton. Both were arrested.
A 16-year-old from Beaumont, who cannot be named due to the provisions of the Youth Criminal Justice Act (YCJA), was arrested for outstanding warrants, which included charges of:
- Resisting a peace officer
- Failing to comply with conditions of a youth sentence order
The male was released to an adult and is scheduled to appear in court in Edmonton on May 22, 2019 and Lac La Biche on May 24, 2019.
Tyler Monias (19) from St Paul was arrested for outstanding warrants, which included charges of:
- Failing to attend court
- Failing to comply with a recognizance (X3)
- Failing to comply with the conditions of a youth sentence order
He was additionally charged with resisting a peace officer and failing to comply with a recognizance. He was released following a bail hearing and is scheduled to appear in court in Rocky Mountain House on April 24, 2019 and Fort Saskatchewan on May 9, 2019.
The stolen vehicle was towed for forensic analysis.
Later that day, a vehicle was spotted by EADRCRU avoiding Peace Officers conducting traffic control on the South end of Lac La Biche. RCMP members stopped the vehicle and learned that the driver was criminally prohibited from operating a motor vehicle.
Joel Hope-Jackson (29) of Hay River was charged with driving while prohibited. He was released and is scheduled to appear in court in Lac La Biche on June 10, 2019.
RCMP members then moved to a residence in Beaver Lake where they determined a priority offender was hiding from police. RCMP members entered the residence and located the offender in the basement who resisted arrest, but was apprehended without injury.
Aaron Anderson (33) from Beaver Lake was charged with resisting a peace officer and was arrested for his outstanding warrants, which included charges of:
- Failing to comply with a recognizance (X3)
- Resisting a peace officer (X2)
- Escaping lawful custody
He was held in custody following a bail hearing and is scheduled to appear in court in Lac La Biche on April 15, 2019.
On April 11, 2019, EADRCRU and Cold Lake PDS located two stolen vehicles nearby a residence in Heart Lake while looking for a priority offender in that area. Another male wanted on outstanding warrant from Edmonton was also located nearby and arrested.
Cody ERASMUS (37) of Heart Lake, was arrested for his outstanding charges, which included:
- Fraud
- Possession of a stolen credit card
- Possession of property obtained by crime (X3)
- Failing to comply with a probation order (X2)
- Dangerous driving
- Flight from police (X2)
- Obstructing a peace officer
He was later released and is scheduled to appear in court in Edmonton on May 8, 2019.
The search for the priority offender continued and brought RCMP members to a row of apartment buildings in Lac La Biche. During the search of an apartment of interest, EADRCRU located another wanted offender and arrested him without incident.
Tristan Monias (22) of Heart Lake was arrested for his outstanding charges from Lac La Biche, which included:
- Aggravated assault
- Breaking and entering
- Theft of truck (X2)
- Mischief
He was held in custody following a bail hearing and is scheduled to appear in court in Lac La Biche on April 15, 2019.
Further investigation in the apartment buildings resulted in RCMP uncovering a drug trafficking operation being run out of one of the apartments. RCMP members executed a search warrant on the apartment and recovered stolen firearms, prohibited devices, over 35 grams of a substance believed to be crack-cocaine packaged for sale, nearly 400 grams of cannabis, and approximately 250 “scratch and win” style lottery tickets.
Clayton Lucier (30) of Lac La Biche was charged with multiple offences, which include:
- Possession of a controlled substance for the purpose of trafficking
- Possessing cannabis for the purpose of selling
- Possession of a prohibited weapon (X2)
- Possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose
- Possession of property obtained by crime
- Possession of a weapon obtained by crime (X2)
- Unsafe storage of a firearm (X2)
He was released following a bail hearing and is scheduled to appear in court in Lac La Biche on April 29, 2019.
“Getting illegal guns off of the street is a priority for our unit,” said Cst. Guillaume Wilson (EADRCRU). “It’s particularly concerning in this case that the firearms were seized in such close proximity to an elementary and middle school. We will continue to partner with the Lac La Biche RCMP to do everything we can to eradicate this type of crime in the community.”
Late that afternoon, an anonymous tip was received indicating the location of the priority offender EADRCRU had been looking for earlier that morning. RCMP members intercepted a vehicle the offender was occupying in Lac La Biche. The offender tried escaping, but was quickly apprehended by EADRCRU after a short foot chase.
Cason Monias (18) of Lac La Biche was charged with resisting a peace officer (X2) and failing to comply with a probation order (X2). He was also arrested for his outstanding warrants, which included charges of:
- Failing to comply with a youth order (X6)
- Possession of property obtained by crime over $5,000 (X2)
He was held in custody following a hearing and is scheduled to appear in court in Lac La Biche on April 15, 2019.
On April 12, 2019, as a result of collaboration with the Strathcona County General Investigation Section, a joint operation was organized by EADRCRU, Lac La Biche RCMP, Cold Lake PDS, and EAD Criminal Intelligence to apprehend Clayton Huppie who was wanted in connection with an armed robbery incident in Sherwood Park. A Crime Stoppers tip had been received that Huppie was hiding at a residence in Beaver Lake.
RCMP members located the residence and surrounded it. RCMP members entered the residence and located Huppie hiding in the basement of the house with another male. Both were arrested and a prohibited firearm was also recovered. Additionally, a stolen vehicle hidden behind the residence was located by EADRCRU.
Clayton Huppie (35) of Lac La Biche was arrested for his outstanding charges, which included:
- Robbery
- Possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose
- Driving while prohibited
- Failing to comply with a recognizance (X3)
He was also charged with several new offences, including:
- Failing to comply with conditions of a recognizance
- Possession of a prohibited firearm
- Possession of a weapon contrary to an order
He was remanded in custody following a bail hearing and is scheduled to appear in court in Sherwood Park on April 24, 2019 and Lac La Biche on April 15, 2019.
Brian Boostrom (24) of Lac La Biche was charged with resisting a peace officer and failing to comply with a probation order.
He was released and is scheduled to appear in court in Lac La Biche on May 13, 2019.
“The offenders operating in Eastern Alberta need to recognize that EADRCRU is not going away,” said Cst. Wilson. “We are going to continue using an intelligence based approach and partnerships to apprehend offenders and make our communities safer.”
Alberta
Lawyer tells Alberta’s highest court review board biased in de Grood’s case

A family member of five slain students holds a heart sign with their names on it following a court decision in Calgary, Alta., Wednesday, May 25, 2016. Alberta’s highest court is being asked to overturn a review board decision on the stabbing deaths of five young people at a Calgary house party that confined a man to a supervised Edmonton group home. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh
By Ritika Dubey in Edmonton
Alberta’s highest court is being asked to overturn a review board decision that confined a man to a supervised Edmonton group home after the stabbing deaths of five young people at a Calgary house party.
The lawyer representing Matthew de Grood argued Wednesday the review board’s decision was biased, citing what she described as political interference from Alberta’s former justice minister.
“The appellant says, ‘I think the conclusion about me is wrong. The board’s conclusion is incorrect and not supported by evidence,”’ Jacqueline Petrie said before the Alberta Court of Appeal. “He says there’s no significant evidence that he’s a risk.”
De Grood, 31, was found not criminally responsible in 2016 for the killings two years earlier of Zackariah Rathwell, Jordan Segura, Kaitlin Perras, Josh Hunter and Lawrence Hong because he was suffering from schizophrenia at the time. Petrie said de Grood has been stable on medication, is at low risk to reoffend and should be allowed to live with his parents while being monitored under a full warrant.
She argued the review board misunderstood medical evidence during the September 2022 review, which deemed de Grood a significant risk despite the assessment showing improvements. She said the board is supposed to recommend the least onerous disposition compatible with public safety and did not do that for de Grood.
The defence lawyer has said the review had been influenced by former justice minister Doug Schweitzer, who weighed in on de Grood’s case in October 2019 after the panel allowed de Grood to transition from institutional care to a supervised group home.
He has been under supervision at a group home. His case is reviewed by the Alberta Review Board yearly to see whether he can transition back into the community while maintaining public safety.
Petrie pointed at de Grood’s “exemplary record,” and that he has been “compliant to the (medical) treatment team.”
“Nobody knew he had schizophrenia (at the time of the stabbings) and needed medication.”
Crown prosecutor Matthew Griener said the board considered a conditional discharge but dismissed it, citing a relapse in schizophrenia symptoms in 2021.
Griener said de Grood’s relapses were brief and happened at the hospital, providing an early window for medical professionals to intervene.
Justice Kevin Feehan said de Grood may be low-risk, but the consequences of even one relapse could be significant.
Reading from an expert’s report, Feehan said: “A low risk to offend doesn’t mean the reoffence would not be severe.”
Some family members of the victims drove from Calgary for the hearing.
Segura’s mother, Patty, said the last nine years have been about de Grood and his rights.
“He should be thankful that he ended up NCR (not criminally responsible) rather than end(ing) with five life sentences for murdering five people,” she said. “He should not be appealing.”
Hunter’s father, Barclay, opposed a potential full release.
“The idea that he wouldn’t be monitored for the rest of his life seems to defy logic, it doesn’t make any sense,” said the father.
Hunter’s mother, Kelly, said the family has had “no healing.”
“We do this every year, at least once. Now, this is the second appeal,” she said. Barclay
Hunter said although there are attempts to reintegrate de Grood into society, he hopes the man is not left on his own with an absolute discharge.
“Regardless of what they say, he killed five people. If that doesn’t stand on its own as a risk factor, then I don’t know what does.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 7, 2023.
—
Crime
Canadians want revenge on Bernardo, but that’s not how prison works: ex-official

By Stephanie Taylor in Ottawa
One of the architects of the law that governs Canada’s prison system says it’s understandable people want revenge on killer and serial rapist Paul Bernardo, but that’s not what the prison system is designed for.
Mary Campbell also says it is regrettable the Correctional Service of Canada has not been more transparent in how it handled the matter — which the law allows it to be.
Campbell, a lawyer who retired from her role as director-general of the corrections and criminal justice directorate in the Public Safety Department in 2013, said that without question Bernardo’s crimes were horrific.
Broadly speaking, the corrections system has a mandate to rehabilitate offenders.
Politicians from all parties and levels of government have decried Bernardo’s transfer from a maximum-security penitentiary to a medium-security prison in Quebec.
News of the transfer was confirmed last week by the lawyer for the families of two of his victims, Kristen French and Leslie Mahaffy, who want him sent back.
Both teenage girls were kidnapped, sexually assaulted and murdered by Bernardo in the early 1990s. He was also convicted of manslaughter in the death of Tammy Homolka, who died after being drugged and sexually assaulted. Tammy was the 15-year-old sister of Bernardo’s then-wife Karla Homolka.
Karla Homolka was released in 2005 after completing a 12-year sentence for her role in the crimes committed against French and Mahaffy.
Bernardo admitted to sexually assaulting 14 other women. He has been declared a dangerous offender and is serving a life sentence.
Bernardo has spent 30 years under maximum security, which Campbell said is a long time for any offender.
And while she understands why people want to see him kept there, she said the criteria for transferring an inmate to another penitentiary “is not based on revenge.”
“We, as a country, gave up torture quite a while ago, ” she said in an interview Tuesday. “And we’re pretty critical of other countries that engage in torture.”
After the news broke, Ontario Premier Doug Ford said he thinks Bernardo should be locked up for “23 hours a day,” while Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre has called on Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government to enact changes that would force those who are convicted of multiple murders to serve their entire sentence in maximum security.
The correctional service is reviewing the decision to transfer Bernardo. Under the Corrections and Conditional Release Act, inmates are given security classifications based on factors including escape risk, which inform where they serve their sentences.
In the case of Bernardo, who is now in his late 50s, the correctional service says a move to a medium-security prison poses no risk to public safety.
The reason behind his transfer, however, is a mystery, with the federal correctional service saying it is “restricted by law” in what it can divulge.
Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino said Canadians are owed an explanation as to why Bernardo was transferred.
Tim Danson, the lawyer representing the French and Mahaffy families, said he was not given the information because of Bernardo’s privacy rights.
Campbell said the law spells out that the commissioner of the country’s prison system has the power to disclose to victims a summary of the reasons for the transfer of a particular offender, in cases where it is determined their interest outweighs any invasion of the offender’s privacy.
She said the commissioner can also choose to release information under the federal privacy law in cases where they determine the public’s right to know overrides an inmate’s privacy.
“When (the Correctional Service of Canada) says they can’t release details because of the law, that’s not entirely accurate,” she said. “There are exceptions.”
“It is unfortunate that CSC maybe hasn’t been a little bit more transparent, explaining things.”
She added that there are more than 20,000 other people serving a sentence in Canadian prisons and jails, and the rules have been designed to apply broadly.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 7, 2023.
-
Alberta2 days ago
Three men, including police officer, face charges after overdose death in cell
-
Business1 day ago
CNN head Chris Licht is out at the global news network after a brief, tumultuous tenure
-
Alberta2 days ago
Michael White, convicted of killing pregnant wife, gets full parole
-
Crime2 days ago
Ford calls for ouster, Poilievre decries Liberal response to Bernardo prison transfer
-
National2 days ago
Wildfire roundup: A look at what’s burning across the country and who’s affected
-
Automotive1 day ago
New York City goes after Hyundai, Kia after security flaw leads to wave of social media fueled theft
-
Canadian Energy Centre1 day ago
Indigenous leaders meet G7 diplomats to make case for Canadian LNG
-
Opinion1 day ago
EDDIE EDITOR’S EDDIE HEADLINE FOR JUNE 7