Soon there will be a verdict in the case of false possession of a weapon
Photo: Castanet
A Penticton man who held a woman down with what appeared to be a real gun will soon be sentenced.
Anthony Randolph Muskego, 30, appeared in provincial court in Penticton on Wednesday.
Lawyers for Muskego and the Crown asked the judge to allow Muskego to change his previously entered guilty plea due to some technicalities surrounding the crime situation.
In early March 2023, Muskego pointed what appeared to be a gun at a woman trying to recover an allegedly stolen bicycle.
The court found that when the weapon was used in this way, it was unfit for use. The lawyers argued that Muskego should therefore plead guilty to the criminal code charge of “assault with a weapon” rather than “pointing a firearm” because of the legal significance associated with both charges.
It was argued that the weapon in question was not capable of being used as a firearm but was in fact a weapon in the sense that it was used as such against the victim.
After a brief confusion, Muskego agreed to plead guilty to “aggravated assault.”
Judge Lynett Jung agreed to the new plea and ordered the case to be set for a later date.
Jung also asked for an update on “the case at the (Okanagan Correctional Center), including Muskego’s progress with drug counseling and rehabilitation, ahead of sentencing.”