One of the men involved in a Manola home invasion last summer that ended with one of the suspects being shot and killed will spend the next seven months behind bars.
Appearing in Westlock Provincial Court June 7 via CCTV from the Edmonton Remand Centre, Coty Anthony Laundrie pleaded guilty to possession of stolen property, break and enter to commit an indictable offence (not a dwelling), two counts of mischief to property, breach of probation and breaking and enter with intent to commit an indictable offence (housebreaking) and failure to comply with conditions.
Judge Vaughn Myers sentenced Laundrie to 17 months behind bars — four months for breaking and entering into a workshop, one month for breaching court orders and one year for breaking into a house where a man was killed.
He was credited 288 days in jail with 222 days remaining on his sentence. He was also given a $300 fine, a lifetime ban on restricted and prohibited weapons and a 10-year ban on possessing firearms, crossbows, ammunition and explosives.
On the housebreaking charge, Crown prosecutor Marissa Tordoff told the court that Laundrie and another man went to a Manola home on Aug. 10, 2016 with the plan to steal firearms.
A man at the residence was asleep on the couch and woke up to the sound of the men breaking through the door.
The resident had a gun with him and shot and killed Laundrie’s companion.
“Mr. Laundrie admitted to breaking in and saw (the man) being killed,” Tordoff said.
Myers spoke to Laundrie and said the hurt he caused to his friend’s mother on that fateful night was immense.
“This set of facts just screams sadness,” he said. “The wanton destruction that you levied against (the workshop owner) pales in comparison to the pain you caused.”
Court heard that in the months leading up to that night, Laundrie broke into a workshop on a rural property near Westlock on March 8, 2016. There he stole a generator, jerry can, alcohol and a number of other items.
Laundrie tried to break into a gun safe but couldn’t and damaging the safe in the attempt. He also hotwired a tractor and drove it into a door, damaging both.
Footprints and a DNA sample left on a can at the scene led police back to Laundrie.
Then on Jan. 20, 2017, Laundrie was on probation to keep the peace and be of good behaviour. He also had to report to a bail officer and check into a residential treatment centre but did neither.
