Man pleads guilty to weapons charge

A Lethbridge man who has been in custody for several months waiting to deal with 35 weapons-related charges won’t have to spend anymore time in jail.

Byron George Page was facing a break-and-enter charge and multiple counts of possession of a weapon obtained by commission of an offence, unauthorized possession of a firearm, possession of a firearm knowing its possession is unauthorized, possession for the purpose of weapons trafficking, possession of a weapon while prohibited, possession of stolen property under $5,000, and breaching conditions of a court order.

However, Page pleaded guilty Monday in Lethbridge provincial court to one count of possession of a weapon while prohibited and was sentenced to nine months in jail. The rest of the charges were withdrawn.

During the brief sentencing hearing, the Crown said Page had come into possession of a .44-calibre Smith and Wesson handgun after another person broke into a Lethbridge home Nov. 2, 2016 and stole several firearms. Page never sold or transferred the gun, but kept it even though he had earlier been prohibited by the court from possessing weapons.

Although handed a jail sentence, Page was given credit for time he had already spent in custody waiting to deal with his charges, and his sentence is served. He also received another weapons prohibition for five years.

Defence lawyer Miranda Hlady agreed with the sentence and said Page plans to attend a residential drug treatment facility after he is released.