Police charge three men
Charges laid in connection with 2016 alleged assault at Pictou County Gate Keepers Clubhouse
A man found severely injured in a parked truck in Glendale, Cape Breton, in 2016 kicked off an investigation that has led to the arrest of three men, accused of assaulting him inside the New Glasgow location of the Pictou County Gate Keepers.
RCMP Northeast Nova Major Crime Unit arrested three men on Tuesday in relation to an ongoing investigation that began in 2016.
Nova Scotia RCMP Public Information Officer Cpl. Dal Hutchinson said the investigation took some time to complete, which is why the arrests didn’t come sooner.
“With any investigation such as this it can be quite complicated,” Hutchinson said. “You look at it like a large puzzle with multiple pieces. You have to piece it together.”
He said the police raids that happened in 2016 and 2017 at the Gate Keepers clubhouse in New Glasgow helped gather pieces of information that were examined during the investigation.
“We want to make sure that we do a thorough investigation before we got out and arrest people and pursue charges.”
On June 7, 2016, Inverness District RCMP responded to call after a man who was found severely injured in a parked pickup truck on the side of Highway 105 in Glendale, Cape Breton. The man was transported by EHS LifeFlight to hospital in critical condition.
The police investigation that followed determined the man was assaulted inside the former Pictou County Gate Keepers Clubhouse in New Glasgow and then transported to the pickup truck and left on the side of Highway 105.
Forty-eight-year-old Donald Melbourn Messenger, of Broughton, Cape Breton; 45-year-old William Jeffrey Giles, of Pictou County; and 49-year-old Charles Jardine Hayman, of New Glasgow, are all facing charges of aggravated assault, forcible confinement, conspiracy to commit an indictable offence and accessory after the fact.
All three were held in custody and appeared in Pictou provincial court Nov. 28. They were released on recognizance and are scheduled to return to court Jan. 21, 2019.
The investigation continues to be led by the North East Nova Major Crimes Unit, with assistance from Inverness District RCMP, New Glasgow Regional Police, Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit, RCMP Forensics Identification Section and Criminal Intelligence Service Nova Scotia.
Hutchinson could offer no new details on the condition of the man who had been injured in 2016, only to say he was 45 at the time of the alleged assault.
He didn’t rule out the possibility there could be other arrests.
“If new evidence surfaces, there may be other people who could be identified as being part of the offence that took place,” he said.
The clubhouse, located on MacLean Street in New Glasgow, is now operated by the Katt Sass MC. Police have confirmed they do not believe there is any Gate Keeper Club house operating in Pictou County any more.