NANAIMO — A well-known offender will spend more time in jail following a rash of incidents, including assaulting two police officers.
Kym Robert Arkell, 41, was sentenced to 106 more days in jail in a Nanaimo provincial court on Wednesday, Oct. 8, after pleading guilty to several charges related to incidents from last October to March, when he was arrested and held following an axe-throwing incident where he bear-sprayed police.
Judge Brian Harvey said Arkell had a long and “relentless” criminal record due to a long history of drug abuse and mental health concerns.
“You’re getting too old for this type of behaviour. I understand the challenges you have, the losses you’ve had….it’ll be a short stint you’ve got to serve in custody before you can hopefully get the help you need. I encourage you to get that help, because if you don’t, you’ll likely be doing a life sentence in installments.”
Arkell will also be on probation for 18 months following his release, with conditions including no contact with the victims or returning to the properties, a weapons ban, and complete required counselling or programs related to mental health or addiction.
Incidents
Arkell pleaded guilty to multiple charges earlier this year in relation to several incidents in Nanaimo.
Around 5 a.m. on Oct. 10, 2024, Arkell was trying to gain access to the Living Forest Campground on Maki Rd., but was stopped by a recently installed electronic gate.
Arkell cut the wires on a nearby electrical box in an attempt to gain entry, but fully disabled the gate instead.
The owner was able to identify Arkell on video surveillance.
They had known Arkell since he was 12 as he lived in the area, having multiple similar run-ins with him in the past.
In a victim impact statement read in court, the campground owner said the stress and anxiety he, his family, and employees deal with daily are only abated when Arkell is in jail.
Arkell was ordered to pay $379 in restitution for the damage caused to the gate.
On Jan. 28 of this year, residents of an apartment complex in Chase River reported run-ins with a man identified as Arkell, allegedly dumpster diving.
When asked to leave the area by a guard, Arkell threatened to “smash” him and his cell phone.
Arkell also pointed a can of bear spray at the guard during a similar incident earlier in the month at the same complex.
On Feb. 13, Arkell and another man broke into a parked vehicle at a gas station on Mary Ellen Dr. and stole several items from inside.
They were both identified by security footage, as they had been inside the gas station earlier in the day.
Only four days later, Arkell was found asleep outside an address on Applecross Rd.
When asked by a guard to leave, Arkell responded by threatening to punch him out, kill him, and dump his body in the ocean.
The most serious offence occurred on March 15, when police were called following a report of a man throwing an axe into the back of a truck along Aulds Rd. near Woodgrove Centre.
Arkell was identified by witnesses on scene and ran once police arrived, stopping only to pull bear spray out of his backpack and unloading it towards the pursuing officers.
They managed to subdue the struggling Arkell and arrest him. One officer was treated on scene, while another was sent to hospital for further decontamination. Neither sustained a serious injury or missed work due to the incident.
He was arrested and charged, and has been held in custody ever since, given credit for over 300 days of time served.
Background
Defence attorney James Wright said despite having two supportive parents growing up, Arkell had major behavioural issues due to a diagnosis of Klinefelter syndrome, which causes an extra X chromosome in males and can lead to intellectual struggles.
He was first put into the government’s care at the age of nine, and then was “more or less” in full-time care after he turned 12.
Wright told court Arkell began drinking heavily and doing drugs at a young age, experimenting with heroin, methamphetamine, and phencyclidine (PCP) when he was 10.
Arkell spent time in numerous group homes, psychiatric facilities, and on the street prior to turning 18, spending a significant portion of his adult life behind bars.
Since 2005, Arkell has had at least one conviction per year, with 36 separate convictions in total, not including the most recent charges.
He has been sentenced to over 1,279 days in jail and over a decade of probation in that time.
“Treatment isn’t something he’s tried before in earnest. It’s not something that’s been quite as ready to go as it currently is. Mr. Arkell, in my respectful submission, should be given the opportunity to pursue that and to move forward with trying to get right, so he’s not back before the court again,” said Wright.
Wright said a spot is reserved for Arkell at a treatment facility in Vancouver when he’s released.
Arkell declined to address the court during sentencing, with Wright speaking on his behalf, saying he’s sorry for the harm he’s caused.
He was handed a two-year jail sentence for arson for causing significant damage to the Northfield Rd. Tim Horton’s location in August 2022.
Other notable crimes include threatening to kill a retail worker at Country Club Centre in 2020, as well as a pair of life-threatening stand-offs with Nanaimo RCMP at Beban Park in 2017 and 2018.
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