A man was told to take a break from his “work hard, play hard” lifestyle after he was caught with crystal meth in St. Albert.
Jason Edward Kostiuk appeared in court via closed-circuit television (CCTV) from the Edmonton Remand Centre on Monday and pleaded guilty to possession of a controlled substance and failure to comply with the conditions of his recognizance.
Kostiuk was caught with two packets of crystallized methamphetamine weighing in at slightly less than one gram, after he was pulled over by St. Albert RCMP for rolling through a red light while making a right hand turn on Oct. 15.
Initially, both Kostiuk and his passenger gave officers false names. RCMP then searched the car.
At the time of the routine patrol the 34-year-old was under a court order to stay away from non-prescribed controlled drugs. Court heard his criminal record included convictions of theft, assault, possession of stolen property and fraud.
Judge Norman Mackie advised Kostiuk to take a break from his “work hard, play hard” lifestyle and instead “rest hard” while he’s in jail. The 34-year-old was given a 46-day sentence with credit for seven days time served.
A man will spend the next two months in jail after he unsuccessfully attempted to hide stolen booze in his pants.
Kevin Lee Castor appeared in court via CCTV from the remand centre to face charges of theft under $5,000, unlawful consumption of alcohol and public intoxication.
Castor only pleaded guilty to the theft-under charge for stealing several bottles of alcohol from the Liquor Barn in St. Albert.
Court heard on Oct. 19, St. Albert RCMP arrested Castor for public intoxication at a local Safeway. Officers found a half-full bottle of Bacardi rum on the 37-year-old in addition to two full bottles of vodka and rum hidden in his pants.
Castor claimed he bought the booze on the road, but police had an eyewitness account of him pushing his way out of the Liquor Barn store earlier that day, with a “bulky waistline.”
Court heard Castor’s nine page criminal record dates back to 1988 as a youth.
Mackie handed down a 60-day jail sentence with credit for three days time served. The rest of charges were withdrawn and the two full bottles of alcohol were returned to Liquor Barn.
An Edmonton man was given credit for time served after a drunken parking lot fight netted him jail time.
Paul Gerard Arcand was arrested for fighting with a woman at a Husky gas station in St. Albert on Sept. 6. According to police notes, the woman was telling Arcand they needed to leave to get a hotel for the night but Arcand laid on the ground of the parking lot and wouldn’t budge.
The woman then kicked Arcand in the head. A witness had to break the two up when the fight escalated.
Upon his arrest, Arcand told officers he had consumed seven beers that night.
The 34-year-old appeared in St. Albert court on Monday and pleaded guilty to causing a disturbance.
Arcand was given credit for six days time served. He is currently doing time for charges out of Edmonton.
