A case of mistaken identity has resulted in a Prince George man being convicted of assault, mischief and possession of a weapon.
At the time of the incident, Alvin Iverson had lived next door to the A&W on Tamarack Street and 20th Ave for two years, and on Tamarack Street for six years.
His yard was separated from A&W by a “dilapidated” fence that was often kicked in. In his defence, he said he had “people running rampant through my yard, stealing stuff, all the time.”
With his living room window facing the parking lot of the A&W, Iverson claimed he saw rampant drug dealing taking place in the parking lot at all hours of the day.
Then on April 23rd, 2015, shortly after midnight after drinking several beers throughout the evening he looked out his window and spotted a lone individual sitting inside his vehicle and two people talking. With the A&W closed, he assumed a drug deal was going down.
Iverson grabbed a baseball bat and headed out the door to confront them.
At the restaurant, two employees were locking up the building and another person waiting in a car to pick them up.
The driver heard a loud bang on his car and looked up to see Iverson walking away from his vehicle yelling at the two employees accusing them of selling drugs.
The two employees tried to convince Iverson they were not drug dealers, but in the ensuing commotion he chest bumped and kicked the store supervisor. At that point, the driver dialed 911 and the two employees got into the car, but not before they say Iverson hit the car with his bat.
The three men waited for RCMP at the 7-11 on 20th Ave and Iverson went home.
When police arrived at his door that same night, Iverson immediately told the officer “I thought they were selling drugs.”
After a short tussle and the arrest, the arresting officer testified that Iverson told him “Yea, I fucked up. I hit his car. I guess I hit him after . . . I really fucked up… you can keep my bat.”
Iverson was released after about 35 to 40 minutes without being taken him to the detachment and went on his way without incident.
Iverson later testified that for the past six years he has complained to the police about the drug dealing. He is told “they will get back to me” but no one gets back to him with any information as to whether they dealt with his complaint. He says he rarely bothers to call the police anymore.
He says that the problems in his neighbourhood continue. Recently he found a man passed out on his walkway. He tried to wake him but was unable to do so and had to call the police to have him removed.
His testimony goes on to state that he realizes he got the wrong guys and “definitely wishes things had gone differently.”
While he was found guilty of assault, possession of a weapon and mischief to property, he was acquitted of uttering threats and obstructing a peace officer.
Iverson has a sentencing hearing scheduled for November.