The case of a Yukon man who went on a rampage with a 2x4 in Penticton is now a complicated interprovincial matter.
Cole Nikolaus Sinclair, born in 1999, was charged with eight counts of mischief under $5,000, two counts of resisting a peace officer and four counts of breaching a release order for the Sept. 5, 2023 incident that saw a man smash several vehicles.
B.C. Crown prosecution appeared in provincial court in Penticton on Jan. 3, 2024 to try and get an order to compel Sinclair to attend the court remotely from the Yukon.
On Sept. 5, Sinclair allegedly took a 2x4 and went about smashing parked cars and house windows along Moosejaw Street in Penticton, with one eyewitness who took to social media sharing that as many as 20 had been hit.
Where the case grows more complicated is the fact that Sinclair had travelled to Penticton from the Yukon after being released on bail for other charges.
READ MORE: Man from Yukon arrested after going on rampage in Penticton neighbourhood
In Whitehorse in May, 2023, Sinclair had been charged with two counts of breaking and entering into a home with the intent to commit an indictable offence, one count of using a firearm while committing an indictable offence, one count of carrying a weapon to commit an offence and one count of failing to properly store a firearm.
According to an RCMP media release at the time of his arrest on that matter, Sinclair had allegedly attempted to break into a home in Whitehorse where he was seen on surveillance cameras.
Sinclair is currently in custody in the Yukon, and his Yukon lawyer has told B.C. prosecutors that his retainer does not cover him attending B.C. court.
An attempt by the prosecution to get an order to have Sinclair appear by video from a Justice of the Peace in December of 2023 was rejected, with the Crown being told it was their responsibility to make suitable video arrangements with the Yukon.
“Which is obviously news to me, and certainly to the Crown,” the prosecutor told the court in Penticton. “I don’t know how I can control video links outside of the province of British Columbia.”
Crown returned to provincial court to get a provincial court judge’s assistance on the case, and received an order to have Sinclair appear remotely for his next court date.
Sinclair is currently set to have an arraignment hearing in Initial Appearance Court in Penticton on Jan. 17.
