A Trail man has been sentenced to seven years behind bars for a series of violent crimes that began New Year’s Eve 2017.
Brandon Coons, 26, was found guilty of five charges, including assault with a weapon and trafficking cocaine, after a two-week trial in Rossland in July.
According to court documents, the case began on Dec. 31, 2017, when Coons picked up a man, who was not identified, at the Greyhound bus stop in Castlegar and drove him to Birchbank Station Road near Trail.
Shortly thereafter, two masked men, never identified by police, arrived in a second vehicle. They pulled the victim from Coons’ vehicle, and punched and kicked him.
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Coons joined in, and during the assault, a baton-style Taser was used.
The victim was accused of stealing $20,000 worth of cannabis from Coons, according to the documents.
To stop the beating and perhaps buy himself time, the victim told his attackers he’d taken the cannabis to Chilliwack.
The two masked men left in their vehicle, while Coons drove the victim to his home near Trail where he kept him against his will for an hour.
The victim would later report to police that Coons pointed a black revolver-style gun at his head, and told him he would have no problem shooting him.
Soon after, two men drove up and retrieved the victim. They were later identified as Scott Bolton, 33, and Rylee Fines, 27.
Bolton and Fines drove the victim toward Chilliwack to recover the allegedly stolen drugs. The victim reported he was stunned with a Taser several times during the trip.
When the trio stopped at a gas station in Kelowna, the victim escaped and locked himself in the bathroom, where he called police on his cell phone.
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Bolton pleaded guilty to forcible confinement and assault with a weapon, and was sentenced to 251 days in jail and 18 months of probation.
Fines was found guilty of several charges, including forcible confinement, and is awaiting sentencing.
When Coons out of prison, he’ll still be banned for life from owning guns.
newsroom@trailtimes.ca
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