The man charged with robbing two Bonnyville liquor stores was granted release from the Edmonton Remand Centre.
Wallace Stuart Littlewolfe, 26, was arrested and charged with three counts of disguise with intent, two counts of robbery, assault with a weapon, two counts of possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose, and uttering threats to cause death.
During his court appearance on Tuesday, May 1, Honourable Judge Kathleen Williams granted Littlewolfe his request for release.
She said due to his lack of prior criminal record, there is little proof that Littlewolfe won’t comply with his conditions, which were described by Williams as “house arrest.”
On April 3, Littlewolfe and another male entered the Sobey’s Liquor Store in Bonnyville and stole alcohol before leaving the store on bicycles.
Surveillance footage showed two men entering the store with their faces covered, stealing liquor, and then leaving.
Four days later, on April 7, Littlewolfe entered the Liquor Depot with his face covered. Brandishing a knife, he demanded cash before fleeing the scene.
On April 9, RCMP received a call from the Liquor Mart after their store clerk was sprayed in the face with bear mace.
According to Crown prosecutor Jordan Kerr, Littlewolfe had entered the store armed with bear spray. After demanding the clerk open the till and threatening to kill him, Littlewolfe sprayed him in the face and stole about $100 and a bottle of liquor.
Bonnyville RCMP obtained a search warrant for Littlewolfe’s Bonnyville address, where they found evidence he was involved in the three robberies. A sweater, boots, and face covering were located in a closet. These were items the suspect in all three robberies was wearing in surveillance footage.
Littlewolfe was arrested without issue and has remained in custody since.
During a search of the house, an officer spoke with Littlewolfe’s sister who admitted her brother had been high on methamphetamine at the time of the robberies.
Kerr was opposed to Littlewolfe’s release due to the pattern of violence. Littlewolfe started with stealing liquor and over the course of a few weeks, escalated to armed robbery, he explained.
Acting as duty counsel, Stephanie Oleksyn felt conditions of his release could address any concerns.
“This is the first time he has been in any trouble, and this is the first time he has been in jail,” she expressed.
Williams agreed to release Littlewolfe from custody on a $4,000 no cash bail. His conditions include keeping the peace, being of good behaviour, refraining from the consumption of alcohol or illegal drugs, not to attend within the town limits of Bonnyville except to attend court, to remain within his Saddle Lake residence 24-hours a day unless meeting with counsel, seeking treatment, or attending court, no contact with any witnesses or employees, no weapons edged or otherwise, and not to attend any businesses where their sole purpose is selling alcohol, among others.
“He’s going to be under house arrest,” stressed Williams.
Littlewolfe will appear in the Bonnyville Provincial Courthouse on May 15.
