An Edmonton man, who is originally from Fort Smith, has been sentenced to 18 months in jail for pouring gasoline on a house in Fort Smith and threatening to set it and a woman inside the home on fire.
A Yellowknife court heard that Joseph Emile, 31, was intoxicated when the incident occurred in January of this year.
Emile, who had just suffered a devastating family tragedy, pleaded guilty to the charges which included mischief and threatening.
RCMP were called by the woman in the home and smelled a strong odour of gas when they arrived.
They found Emile hiding in the yard of a nearby residence and three officers struggled with him both before and after his arrest.
The woman was not seriously hurt but court heard she still suffers from the traumatic experience.
Emile was also placed on 12 months probation at which time he can only go to Fort Smith for up to ten days at a time and mainly only to visit with family.
He first has to get permission from his probation officer and then tell Fort Smith RCMP when he is coming to the community.
Taking into account Emile’s pre-trial custody, he will have about ten months left to serve.