Drive-by shooting in P.A. results in 4 1/2-year sentences for shooter and driver

By Nigel Maxwell

Two men charged after a drive-by shooting in Prince Albert last year have each received prison sentences for their respective roles.

They were both dealt with Tuesday morning at Prince Albert Provincial Court.

Keistin Blake Deschambeault, the man who pulled the trigger, entered guilty pleas to aggravated assault as well as possession of a firearm while not being licensed to do so. He received 1,620 total days, which works out to roughly 4 1/2 years. He was given 353 days credit for time spent in remand.

D.J. Montgrand, the man driving the stolen SUV, received a two-year sentence for aggravated assault as well as a consecutive 2 1/2 years for flight from police. He also pleaded guilty to a charge of occupying a vehicle knowing there was a prohibited firearm inside it. For this charge, he received a one-year sentence that will run concurrently with the other charges.

The case dates back to the evening of Oct. 4, 2020, when a man dressed all in red was shot multiple times, while standing near the corner of 28th Street and Sixth Avenue East.

According to the statement of facts read in court, the man was shot a total of six times, but fortunately none of the wounds were life-threatening. The motive for the attack remains unclear and the Crown indicated there was no evidence to show it was gang related, or that the accused even knew the victim.

The suspect vehicle, a black SUV, was later located at an address in the east flat area, after crashing first into a fence. Along the way it also hit a parked vehicle.

Inside the SUV, police found ammunition as well as a number of weapons including a rifle and a sawed-off shotgun. Police also learned through their investigation the vehicle was the same one sought by Meadow Lake RCMP following an armed robbery the day before on the Flying Dust First Nation.

In addition to their prison sentences, both Deschambeault and Montgrand received firearms prohibition orders. Deschambeault cannot own or possess a firearm for life, while Montgrand’s order will last 15 years. Montgrand was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $3,200.

Matilda Keenatch-Yellowhead, 18, a passenger in the vehicle, received a 15-month jail sentence during a separate hearing last January.

Following the shooting incident, the vehicle had travelled north of the city, stopped for gas, and then returned to the city. Keenatch-Yellowhead, whose involvement in the crime was limited to sitting in the passenger seat and paying for the gas, was eventually found by police, hiding behind a garbage bin.

Keenatch-Yellowhead told the officers she was not part of any gang, and had no knowledge of what happened, claiming she was sleeping. She also claimed not to know the vehicle had been stolen.