Kruger-Allen pleads guilty to beach assault
The man behind a one-punch assault on a Penticton beach last year that left a Good Samaritan in a medically-induced coma pleaded guilty Monday to that attack and two others.
Thomas Kruger-Allen appeared by video conference in B.C. Supreme Court and admitted to the aggravated assault of Brian Eliason on May 3, 2019, plus simple assaults on two other people present. A fourth count, sexual assault, is expected to be dropped in exchange for the other pleas.
Police at the time said Eliason, a Good Samaritan, was trying to intervene in a dispute between Kruger-Allen and some other beach goers, when Kruger-Allen punched Eliason, causing Eliason to fall backwards and hit his head on concrete.
Eliason was placed in a medically induced coma at Kelowna General Hospital, but has since been released.
Kruger-Allen, who’s being held at the Okanagan Correctional Centre, is due back in court July 20 to set a date for sentencing, pending completion of a psychological report.
While on bail for the beach attacks, Kruger-Allen was arrested in connection with an alleged attack Oct. 19 at an apartment in downtown Penticton.
He was originally charged with seven offences, including two counts of assault causing bodily harm, and elected to proceed straight to trial in B.C. Supreme Court.
However, defence counsel James Pennington noted Monday the assault charges had since been upgraded to aggravated assault, “plus we have a new victim,” so Pennington intends to apply July 20 for permission to reconsider the decision to go straight to trial.
Kruger-Allen has one prior assault conviction on his record for which he was sentenced in July 2019 to 18 months’ probation. Court heard the victim in that case was swarmed by four or five men outside the former Mule Nightclub and suffered a broken nose and orbital bone.