An Abbotsford man has been sentenced to time served for an incident in which he broke into a care home while armed with a knife.
Justin Walsh, 25, previously pleaded guilt to break-and-enter, while a charge of assault with a weapon was stayed at sentencing on Aug. 24 in Abbotsford provincial court.
The incident occurred Feb. 24, 2022 at a care home in the 33000 block of Bevan Avenue at 2:43 a.m. Police were called to a report of a man with a knife breaking into the building.
Walsh ran away before officers arrived, but the area was contained and a police service dog tracked him down at a nearby residence that was known to him. He surrendered to police without further incident.
Walsh served some time in custody before being released and was then involved in a police takedown on Jan. 12, 2023.
Police at the time said they had been trying to locate Walsh after he failed to show up for court appearances and a warrant had been issued for his arrest.
Plainclothes officers located Walsh entering a residence in the 2900 block of Old Clayburn Road.
Officers contained the home, blocked off the road and attempted to have Walsh come out on his own.
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Walsh eventually walked out of the residence about three hours later. He was arrested and remained in custody until his latest sentencing.
The incident at the care home took place less that one month after Walsh had been released from prison on another set of charges.
He had been sentenced on Jan. 27, 2022 to time served and three years’ probation after pleading guilty to six robberies in the Lower Mainland.
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Walsh was one of two men who initially faced a combined 35 charges for a series of armed robberies that occurred in December 2019 and January 2020 in Abbotsford, Langley, Chilliwack, Maple Ridge and Surrey.
The pair were arrested on Jan. 11, 2020 after the robbery of a Subway restaurant in Abbotsford.
At the time of their arrest, police said the two men were believed to be linked to another 16 armed robberies at liquor stores, gas stations, convenience stores and banks.
The remaining charges were laid in August 2020. In addition to the six robbery charges, Walsh also pleaded guilty to using an imitation firearm.
The charges for his co-accused, Clint Aaron Jeremy Billy, are still making their way through the courts.
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