A 72-year-old Mission man who pleaded guilty to an incident in which his wife was shot in June 2014 has been sentenced and released.
Bruce Croft was sentenced in B.C. Supreme Court in Chilliwack on Monday afternoon to three years plus a day for intentionally discharging a firearm while being reckless to the life or safety of another person.
His jail term will be followed by two years’ probation.
Croft, who has been in custody at the Surrey Pre-Trial Centre, was given time and a half credit for the two years he has already served.
He was released Monday afternoon and taken by his daughter to his new residence in Abbotsford. His home was found for him by the Raven’s Moon Resource Society, a charitable non-profit society that finds safe housing for those who need it.
As part of Croft’s sentence, he has several restrictions, including: not being permitted to enter the District of Mission, no alcohol and attending counseling and at least one 12-step meeting each week.
He is prohibited from owning firearms for 10 years and may not have any contact with his wife, unless it is indirect through his daughter.
He also has seven days to provide a DNA sample.
Six other charges that were stayed against Croft were attempted murder with a firearm, causing bodily harm by criminal negligence, careless use or storage of a firearm, possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose, and two counts related to the unauthorized possession of a firearm.
Mission RCMP were called to a home on Swan Avenue on June 14, 2014 after they received reports of shots fired and a woman yelling for help.
Police found the 69-year-old victim – Croft’s wife – being tended to by neighbours in the driveway. She had sustained a wound to her lower posterior, from which she later recovered.
Police surrounded the home, and Croft eventually exited the residence with a shotgun pointed at the ground.
He dropped the weapon when he stumbled and fell, and police arrested him. He was charged the following day.