ESTEVAN — A man has pleaded guilty to theft charges for the third time this year, and will spend a few weeks in jail for the offence.
Orrie David Christopher Flatfoot pleaded guilty May 5 in Estevan Provincial Court to one count of theft under $5,000 and violating the terms of his probation. A charge of mischief was stayed.
Crown prosecutor Travis Avery told the court that the latest incident involving Flatfoot occurred April 25, four days after Flatfoot pleaded guilty to previous thefts.
During the incident on April 25, Avery said Flatfoot stole a bicycle that was left unattended by somebody who was purchasing items inside a store. Members of the Estevan Police Service were called and observed Flatfoot on a surveillance camera; they then went to Flatfoot's residence where he was observed outside, in plain view of the street, to be spray painting and disguising the stolen bicycle.
Flatfoot was taken into and has remained in custody since April 25. The owner of the bicycle identified the item.
A joint submission called for a 45-day custodial sentence. Flatfoot had spent 11 days in custody as of May 5, and was given remand credit for 17 days, leaving him with 28 days to serve.
His 15-month probation order, implemented after his first guilty plea in early April, will resume after Flatfoot is released.
Flatfoot's Legal Aid attorney, Joelle Graham, noted Flatfoot is an Indigenous man who has spent time in foster care, and continues to struggle with the trauma of the murder of his mother and brother in his younger days.
Judge Mitch Miller said he hopes he doesn't see Flatfoot back in court.
Background: Flatfoot was placed on probation for 15 months on April 3 after pleading guilty to mischief, thefts and other infractions that occurred in Estevan earlier this year. After Flatfoot was released on probation April 3, he went into a building and stole a hockey jersey. He was arrested after committing two other thefts on April 8.
Flatfoot pleaded guilty to three counts of theft under $5,000, and one count each of breaching a curfew and breaching a probation order, during a video appearance in Estevan Provincial Court on April 21. He was sentenced to time served and his probation continued.
