Brothers accused in Saskatoon assault turn themselves over to police

From behind the glass of a prisoner’s box, two Alberta brothers accused in a brutal assault outside a Sutherland-area lounge made their first court appearance Monday afternoon.

Darren Hinds, 28, and his brother Darcy, 25, are each charged with two counts of aggravated assault after a cellphone video surfaced last week. It showed the two men kicking another man in the head while he was down on the ground in the 900 block of Central Avenue on Nov. 28.

Darren Hinds is also charged with uttering a death threat. On the video, one of the men can be heard saying “I’ll f—–g kill you.”

Police identified the two men as the Hinds brothers and issued warrants for their arrest late last week. The men followed through on a promise to turn themselves over to Saskatoon police Monday morning.

The brothers were visiting from Alberta the weekend of the alleged assault, defence lawyer Brian Pfefferle confirmed outside Saskatoon Provincial Court. He said his clients didn’t flee the province; they were already back home in Alberta when police laid charges.

“So as soon as there was a determination that there might be charges, we contacted the police and indicated they’d be turning themselves in. They were far from hiding,” he said.

While Pfefferle said he couldn’t comment on what little he knew about the events leading up to the alleged assault, he said assaults of “equal of greater severity” happen every weekend in Saskatoon.

“It’s just the police didn’t get called and it didn’t get on video. It appears that there was not even a charge laid for sometime until this reached social media.”

The Crown opposed the release of both men and a bail hearing was set for Tuesday. Pfefferle said the men have no criminal records and the onus is on the Crown to prove why they should not be released.

The victims, a 32-year-old man and 43-year-old man, sustained serious injuries and are recovering, according to police.