Hanwell shooting suspect opts for jury trial
Police allege Blake R. Holt, 23, of Fredericton, shot and wounded two people during a robbery at a mobile home Dec. 2
A Fredericton man accused of a violent robbery in Hanwell late last year during which he allegedly shot someone wants a jury to hear his trial.
Blake R. Holt, 23, of Forest Hill Road, appeared in Fredericton provincial court in person and in custody Wednesday, clad in jail-issued orange sweats.
He was there to answer to 12 indictable charges, the most serious of which are that he discharged a firearm at Daniel Gallant and Corey Vaillancourt with intent to wound them and endanger their lives.
Holt is also charged with robbing Gallant of jewelry and keys while armed and masking his face during that robbery.
Those charges arise as a result of a shooting in a home in the Hanwell Trailer Park in the early-morning hours of Dec. 2.
Police issued an emergency alert noting that two suspects fled the scene in a blue 2012 Honda Civic and were believed to be armed and dangerous.
Two victims at the mobile home were taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, police reported.
The shooting prompted a major police response at the mobile-home community, with officers from both the RCMP and Fredericton Police Force responding there the morning of Dec. 2.
Holt also faces other charges alleging Dec. 2 offences, including flight from police and dangerous driving in Harvey, Fredericton and Oromocto; and theft of gas from Sun’s Convenience in Beaver Dam.
He’s also accused of possessing the stolen Civic, which belonged to Jenefe Gallant; possessing a prohibited .22 rifle without a licence; possessing that unloaded rifle with readily available ammunition; being the occupant of a vehicle in which he knew there was a firearm; and breaching a release order barring him from driving, all on the same day in Longs Creek.
Holt elected Wednesday to be tried in the Court of King’s Bench before a judge and jury.
Defence lawyer Michael Gooding asked for a preliminary inquiry to be scheduled.
Such hearings are held in provincial court to determine if there’s sufficient evidence to set charges over for trial at the higher level of court.
Gooding said the defence wished to hear evidence at the preliminary inquiry relating to the identification of Holt as a suspect, jurisdiction, time and date of the alleged offences and the alleged prohibited nature of the firearm seized.
Crown prosecutor Rebecca Butler said that would require six witnesses to testify at the hearing.
Judge Lucie Mathurin scheduled the preliminary inquiry for Aug. 25 and Sept. 1, and she remanded Holt again until that time.
Police reported in December that the stolen Civic was located at about 12:15 p.m. Dec. 2, and that Holt was arrested at that time. He’s been in custody ever since.
The mini-home at which the incident occurred was also torched Dec. 8, but firefighters extinguished the blaze before it destroyed the structure.
Also charged in the shooting case is Jesse Michael Joe, 41, alleged to have been with Holt at the Hanwell mobile home at the time of the shooting.
Among the charges he’s facing relating to the events of Dec. 2 are assaulting Daniel Gallant with a two-by-four; pointing a firearm at Gallant, robbing him while armed and uttering threats to cause Gallant death and/or bodily harm.
Joe has been on remand since his arrest, which was a few days after the shooting.
His case is still making its way through the courts as well.
You can contact Don MacPherson at ftonindependent@gmail.com.