Police located man through cellphone, abduction trial hears
Jackson sent message with list of demands before he would return daughter, jury told
For a short time, there was nothing. Despite the efforts of police, communication with Michael Gordon Jackson had broken down and the man, who'd disappeared months earlier with his then seven-year-old daughter, went silent. Then: Bingo.
On Feb. 24, 2022, RCMP Const. Curtis Yausie, the lead investigator who was working on the case in Regina, received information that one of the cellphones police believed Jackson to be in possession of had been turned on. It was determined the phone was in Vernon, B.C.
RCMP officers from the area were notified, given a GPS location, and by 11:20 a.m., the man who was wanted on a Canada-wide warrant at the time was placed under arrest by Cpl. Spencer Hornoi, who testified at Jackson's trial as it continued in Regina's Court of King's Bench on Friday.
Jackson, 55, stands accused of what amounts to abduction in contravention of a custody order — a charge dated sometime between Dec. 6, 2021 and Jan. 21, 2022.
He pleaded not guilty when his trial began Monday.
While he and the girl were in the wind, being sought by police, court heard one of Jackson's friends, Shawn Sim, facilitated the passing of messages between the accused man and police.
“I have chosen to do this to protect our child from real and imminent danger,” one piece of correspondence from the then fugitive reads, noting his desire to prevent the child from being vaccinated for COVID -19.
It also contained a series of his “requirements” for the return of his daughter, including: that the child be returned to her mother, not police or a social worker; that she not be interviewed about where she'd been or who she'd met; that she be given time to “adjust” before being “thrown back into her mother's controlling schedule”; that the custody arrangement “go back to the way it was before we left” with an added provision that Jackson be allowed to communicate to his daughter daily; that in the event Jackson was arrested, he be released on his own recognizance; and that Carnduff RCMP “not be involved in our situation.”
Jackson wrote that he'd “sacrificed everything” to protect his daughter “from a mother who said, `I will do what the government tells me to do.' ”
Court previously heard from the child's mother that before he took their child on the run, Jackson demanded she provide a letter stating her position on whether she would have their daughter vaccinated. She testified she'd told him she was waiting for an announcement from the Saskatchewan government before making a decision.
She would later sign an affidavit stating she would not have the child vaccinated, in an effort to have the child returned, but it was to no avail. The jury has heard Jackson was concerned the document was not binding.
“Why did you never issue an Amber Alert?” Jackson asked Yousie.
The officer replied to the self-represented man that he does not believe the situation met the criteria insofar as police could not say there was an imminent threat to the child.
Did the officer believe Jackson had taken the child to prevent her from being vaccinated?
“I believe that played a factor, yeah,” Yousie said.
Court heard RCMP Sgt. Robert Wilson, who worked in crisis negotiation, became involved in later communications with Jackson, prior to the complete breakdown. It was he who responded to Jackson's stated requirements.
While the officer appeared to offer certain assurances in his response, the correspondence did not result in the return of the child.
“What needs to happen to move this forward?” Wilson wrote to Jackson in a subsequent message.
Jackson's correspondence to the officer around that time was also included in an exhibit booklet given to the jury. It shows the accused man was frustrated with how the situation was being presented in the media and by police tactics. He felt police were trying to put pressure on him by making “threats” to his friends and by holding his property “hostage.”
“You are all liars and usurp your authority on a regular basis,” Jackson wrote, later stating he was exercising his “God given rights” to protect his daughter.
“I feel no desire to negotiate with liars and corrupt officials.”
In court, he asked Wilson whether he'd say negotiations broke down because of a lack of trust.
“I'm not sure. I cant, again, speak to what you would feel,” the officer responded.
The trial is scheduled to continue Monday.