Both men involved in a violent escape from a court house in Whitecourt more than two years ago will be serving jail time for the incident. Jake Allan MacIntyre has pleaded guilty to nine charges including aggravated assault, unlawful use of a firearm, assaulting a peace officer, prison breach and robbery.
The day of the escape on February 26, 2013 MacIntyre and another man, Clayton Ness, were left in an unlocked courthouse cell and seized the opportunity to assault a nearby sheriff. They stole his firearm and injured a second sheriff. MacIntyre fired two shots through the wall into the courtroom next door before the two men stole a sheriff’s van and fled the building.
RCMP caught up to them shortly after when they found the van lodged in a snow drift outside the community. MacIntyre is still awaiting sentencing for his charges. His co-accused Ness has already been sentenced to 14 years in prison.