Nearly three weeks since two men were stabbed inside a Sikh temple in Edmonton, police have laid criminal charges in the case.
In a news release Thursday, police said Austin Sim-Pelletier, 27, has been charged with two counts of assault causing bodily harm, two counts of possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose, and mischief.
Sim-Pelletier was charged on Sept. 4 and his next court appearance is scheduled for Friday, police said.
In Thursday’s statement, police said they will continue to investigate a possible motive, including whether the attack was a hate crime.
“This investigation is complex and involves numerous investigative steps that we are still diligently working to complete,” Staff Sgt. Eric Stewart, with the EPS Investigations Branch, said in the statement.
Stewart is expected to speak at a news conference scheduled for 1 p.m. MT. Thursday. CBC News will carry the news conference live.
Police said the accused, who had been released from a federal prison outside the Edmonton region the day before, entered the Nanaksar Gurdwara on Aug. 21 during morning prayers.
Police said the man entered attempted to access the prayer area when he was confronted by staff.
The victims, aged 51 and 75, were taken to hospital with non-life threatening injuries after the attacker was wrestled to the ground by temple attendees and arrested by patrol officers.
Stabbing at Edmonton Sikh temple leaves 2 injured, man in custody
The violent incident inside the sprawling temple on the northeastern outskirts of the city has prompted widespread condemnation from political leaders and Sikh community advocates and raised questions about the release of federal offenders who may pose a risk to public safety.
Sikh communities have documented a rise in recent discriminatory threats and attacks.
During a news conference last month, police said the suspect had a “significant” history of violent crime dating back more than a decade.
The accused had just served a sentence for aggravated assault and assault on a peace officer.
He had been held in custody these past weeks on a warrant issued for his failure to report to his designated Edmonton halfway house in the hours before the attack.
In her statement condemning the attack last month, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said the stabbings should serve as a reminder of the need for federal bail and parole reform.
In a statement to CBC News on Aug. 24, the Correctional Service of Canada (CSC) stated that the suspect had been discharged from custody on statutory release — a policy which means federal officials have little leeway over his removal from custody.
“Statutory release is not a choice or discretionary decision by CSC — it is required by law after an offender serves two-thirds of a fixed-length federal sentence, with the offender being supervised in the community under conditional release,” the statement reads.
Statutory release requires the Correctional Service of Canada to release most federal prisoners into the community under supervision.
Unlike day and full parole, statutory release is not subject to decisions by the Parole Board of Canada but inmates released under the federal policy are required to report regularly to a parole officer and remain subject to conditions.
Most offenders qualify, with the exception of those serving a life sentence or an indeterminate sentence because of a dangerous offender designation issued by the court.
Michael Spratt, an Ottawa-based criminal defence lawyer with APG LLP, told CBC News last month that statutory release laws are “very, very effective” overall, but questioned systemic enforcement when breaches occur.
When an offender breaks release conditions — such as failing to report to a halfway house — infractions are reported quickly, Spratt noted.
He said public scrutiny should focus on how fast law enforcement responds to issue warrants and apprehend individuals in breach, he said.
“The public is rightly concerned when someone does offend on statutory release or on bail,” Spratt said.
“We often focus on the tragedy of the offence, but we don’t focus on the police response … quite often that’s where the chain breaks down.”
