Five charged following January riot at Prince Albert jail

Story by paNOW’s Nigel Maxwell

Charges have been laid in connection to a riot at the Prince Albert Correctional Centre on Jan. 4.

According to court documents obtained by paNOW, five people face charges including participation in a riot, mischief and wilful damage. One of the accused, Kenny Morin, had his matters spoken to Wednesday morning at Prince Albert Provincial Court and was adjourned to Feb. 25.

The co-accused, D.J. Montgrand, Tristan Custer, Keiston Custer and Tyson Lachance, have pending court dates.

The incident on Jan. 4, required the assistance of both the Prince Albert Police Service and the Prince Albert Fire Department. A source close to the incident described for paNOW a very chaotic scene that started when the inmates breached the staff office in the gang range.

“The inmates broke the windows in the cells to the outside as well. They lit fires which rose in the ventilation system and had top tier inmates trapped inside smoke-filled cells for hours,” the source said.

While no one was transported to hospital by ambulance, paNOW was informed at least one staff member was injured after the glass shattered in her face.

According to the source, the incident was gang-related and explained staff couldn’t get onto the unit to let out the inmates trapped in cells in the upper tier for at least two hours.

The incident at the jail marked the second of its kind in less than four months and came after weeks of rising tensions within the province’s correctional facilities in response to COVID-19 protocols. During the incident, inmates scrawled the words “we’re getting treated like animals” on a towel and hung it out a window.

The accused

At the time of the incident, at least two of the accused were on remand for other outstanding matters.

Morin, 20, is facing a charge of second-degree murder in the death last March of 61-year-old David Maxemiuk, a city bus driver. Those charges are to be spoken to at a pre-trial conference at Prince Albert Court of Queen’s Bench. A date has not yet been set.

D.J. Montgrand was one of three people charged after a drive-by shooting in the city last fall and is accused of being the one behind the wheel of the stolen vehicle. Those matters have been scheduled to be spoken to Friday at Prince Albert Provincial Court.