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Chilliwack judge finds charter breach in assault suspect’s arrest

Makayla Nicole Hebert was detained 31 minutes at the scene before being taken in for booking
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Three people accused of serious crimes were in court Monday (Oct. 31) with applications to have statements and search warrants thrown out. (Black Press file)

Three people facing several serious charges including assault, robbery and kidnapping appeared at the Chilliwack Law Courts Monday (Oct. 31).

Makayla Nicole Hebert and Dyllon Bradly Hoffman sat in the gallery while Evan Perry Arnold, who is in custody, appeared by video. Judge Kristen Mundstock ruled on applications made by Hebert and Hoffman related to their arrest on Apr. 20, 2021.

Hebert was attempting to invalidate a statement she gave to police when she was apprehended, saying it was provided under duress. Hoffman was attempting to negate a search warrant on a residence and vehicle involved in the alleged crime.

Hoffman’s application was dismissed outright, but Mundstock did find Hebert’s right to counsel (section 10(b)) under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms was breached. Mundstock found it unreasonable that Hebert was held for 31 minutes at the scene of her arrest without being able to contact a lawyer, before she was taken to the police station for booking.

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Hebert, Hoffman and Arnold stand accused of assaulting a man and woman inside a double-wide trailer on Watson Road before putting them in the trunk of a car, driving to a remote location along Chilliwack Lake Road and assaulting them again.

The alleged incident took place Apr. 19, 2021.

Items used in the alleged assaults included a handgun, crowbar and knife.

The alleged assault went beyond punching, kicking and pushing. According to a statement from the female victim, she was allegedly forced to drink hand sanitizer. That made her throw up, and she said she was allegedly forced to lick up the vomit. Hebert allegedly blew her nose in the female victim’s hair.

The male victim was allegedly punched in the face several times, and a machete was held to his forehead.

Eventually, the victims were allegedly forced to strip down to just their shorts, robbed of their phones and other possessions and abandoned. They walked back toward Chilliwack until they came across campers, who drove them the rest of the way.

The trial in this case is scheduled for March 2023. Before that, Hebert’s charter breach will be argued in court. Section 24(2) “obliges law enforcement authorities to respect the exigencies of the Charter and precludes improperly obtained evidence from being admitted when it impinges on the fairness of the trial.”

The next court date is Nov. 8, 2022 to fix a date for that argument.


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eric.welsh@theprogress.com

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Eric Welsh

About the Author: Eric Welsh

I joined the Chilliwack Progress in 2007, originally hired as a sports reporter.
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