Summerside man pleads guilty to 3 charges but not attempted murder

Andre Kimball Gotell was charged with attempted murder and seven other weapons-related offences after a Summerside incident that prompted police to issue an emergency alert and call in crisis negotiators on Aug. 17.

But on Thursday, most of those charges were stayed as Gotell pleaded guilty to three offences: uttering threats to cause death or bodily harm, possessing a weapon or imitation weapon, and possessing a weapon while prohibited by a court order.

"To say the factual circumstances are confusing would be an understatement,"Crown prosecutor John Diamond told the court, saying the reliability of the witnesses in the case was notgreat and officials still don't know the root cause of the incident.

The Crown and defence agreed that the sentence should take into accountunderlying issues of addiction and drug use. They proposed60 days in custody on the threats charge and 40 days concurrent on the two others, followed by 18 months probation.

Judge Krista MacKaywent along with that, meaning Gotell was sentenced to 100 days in custody but will be released as soon as the paperwork is done,given that he gets time and a half credit for the 68 days he spent in jail afterhis arrest.

Gotell will also be subject to a lifetime weapons ban and has to stay away from the victim.

Gotell's lawyer,Ben Campbell, said Gotell accepts responsibility for what happened and hopes to use the 18 months of probation to get away from everyone involved in the August incident.

Gotell andKayla Emily Sonier, both 32,were arrested on the afternoon of Saturday, Aug. 17, several hours after police received a report of a firearm being discharged at a building that houses apartments on Spring Street.

Police issued an emergency alert asking residents in the areato stay indoors, and crisis negotiators were called in to help de-escalate the situation. Gotell and a65-year-old woman wereeventually taken into custody, but the older womanwas later released.

It turned out that the person who was the target of the alleged attempted murder was not injured.

Attempted murder, weapons charges laid after Summerside firearm incident

3 months ago

Duration 2:38

Two people remain in custody after an incident in Summerside Saturday that involved a firearm and prompted an emergency alert to be issued. Summerside police say one of the accused is charged with attempted murder, and both face a number of weapons-related charges. CBCs Steve Bruce reports.

On Thursday, court was told that police armed with a search warrant had found ammunition and imitation weapons in an upstairs apartment of the building, where Gotell's mother lived. They included airsoft gunsthat resembled aGlock andmultiple rifles, a BB gun and cartridges, a machete anda scope-style weapon.

"Whether or not they are real guns with bullets or [not] real guns, they're still dangerous," MacKay said. "If the other person doesn't know it's fake, they may have a weapon and it's not fake."

Though some of the charges against Gotell were stayed, Diamond said others might be laid in the future, given that a drug investigation tied to the Spring Street address continues.

"These charges are collateral, but that doesn't mean there won't be a drug prosecution. It just means it is still ongoing."