Can a leopard change its spots? Can a man with a really, really long criminal record stop committing crimes? That’s the hope with David Stephen Wilgosh, a prolific offender who has the justice system believing he’s on the straight and narrow.
Wilgosh appeared before Judge Kristen Mundstock at the Chilliwack Law Courts Thursday (April 27) for sentencing on three charges dating back to 2020. In a joint submission between Crown and defence, he received an 18-month conditional sentence order (CSO) with strict conditions that include a curfew and electronic monitoring. But he avoided jail time and will continue living and working in Chilliwack while he serves his sentence.
Theft has been a thing with Wilgosh since his first conviction for possession of stolen property in 2005, and these latest convictions fit the profile. On May 2, 2020 Wilgosh broke into the ranger service station at the Chilliwack Lake provincial park campground where he stole a John Deer Gator utility-terrain vehicle (UTV), tools and other things. For that he pleaded guilty to one count each of break and enter with intent to commit offence, theft $5000 or under and take/occupy vehicle or vessel without consent of owner.
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On Dec. 3, 2020 Wilgosh went into the Chilliwack Home Depot and came out with a plastic bag containing tools he wasn’t allowed to have. RCMP were in the same spot at the same time doing shoplift prevention work, recognized him and arrested him. When they brought him in for booking they searched a trail bag he had in his truck and found that it and the items it contained had been stolen.
The third charge was from Apr. 16, 2020 when Wilgosh was caught with a pry bar in his truck, breaching conditions from a previous conviction.
The charges are old and Mundstock questioned how long it took a while to get to Thursday’s sentencing, but Crown and defence both said it was by design. Wilgosh was serving a CSO for a break-and-enter that expired in March, and Crown prosecutor Aaron Burns said they wanted to see how he did following his curfew and conditions. Wilgosh only had one minor stumble when he left four minutes early for work one morning. Burns called it a ‘technical’ breach and otherwise said the 40-year-old has done “remarkably well.”
Burns told the court that Wilgosh has embraced counselling and Crown is hopeful he can go another 18 months without re-offending. If he does falter, the CSO can be collapsed and Wilgosh can be sent to jail.
Wilgosh will continue to wear an electronic monitoring bracelet on his ankle and observe an 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew. He’ll have a no-go order for several places in Chilliwack, including the Canadian Tire at Cottonwood Shopping Centre and the Husky Truck Stop on Luckakuck Way, and Wilgosh will continue to be prohibited from possessing tools that could be used to commit thefts.
The CSO will be followed by six months probation.
@ProgressSports
eric.welsh@theprogress.com
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