A Summerland man who was found guilty in two separate 2021 assaults received a time served sentence on one count while he awaits sentencing on the other.
Garret Cole Sedawie appeared via video in Penticton Provincial Court on July 28 to hear the judge's decision on the first of the two assaults from 2021, under which he was charged with assault with a weapon and mischief $5,000 or under.
On Aug. 29, 2021, a man who had been living in the same building as Sedawie, and Sedawie's mother, was assaulted by Sedawie on the day he was moving out, over what the defence says was Sedawie's belief that the victim had taken a family heirloom from the home.
Sedawie then took the victim's walking stick and used it to attack him, and even after the victim left the house, Sedawie reportedly followed him and continued his attack. Even after the walking stick broke, Sedawie then used it to smash the windshield of the victim's car.
Crown prosecution was seeking a 270-day jail sentence, with credit for 209 days after taking into account the 139 actual days spent already in custody, as well as an order to repay the victim the $300 it cost to repair the windshield.
Defence, on the other hand, was seeking a 90-day sentence, and agreed to >>>
The case had four different trial dates, and different counsel were attached to the case, with at least one delay over concerns about his fitness to stand trial. While he was found fit to stand, Sedawie has since been diagnosed with schizophrenia and is being treated with monthly injections of medication.
During the trial for the other 2021 assault, Sedawie had begun talking about how he believed that the RCMP and the alleged victim had conspired together to bring the charges forward as part of a plan to get him a criminal record.
At his sentencing on July 28, Sedawie apologized to the court and said that he was remorseful for the incident, adding that he had been a good family friend with the victim for his entire life.
"It's always helpful when I hear from a person who's been convicted of an offence, and it sounds to me like, since your time in custody, even since the trial, that you've maybe gained some insight and, hopefully, your mental health is improving with getting some treatment," said Judge Lisa Wyatt.
Judge Wyatt ended up splitting the difference between the Crown and defence, sentencing Sedawie to 180 days in jail, and ordered him to pay restitution for the smashed windshield.
The second assault trial also ended in 2024 with a guilty verdict, after the judge dismissed Sedawie's fanciful claims in his defence that he was nowhere near his victim, and that the victim had been so focused on glaring at him that he tripped and fell, injuring himself.
An arrest warrant was issued for Sedawie in March of 2025 after he failed to appear for the sentencing date of that second 2021 assault. He is currently scheduled to appear on Aug. 29 to hear his sentence.
A third assault case, allegedly taking place on Nov. 1, 2024, is set to go to trial on Sept. 29, 2025, with associated charges of uttering threats and theft under $5,000.
Sedawie has also been charged with three counts of mischief $5,000 or under, one count of flight from police, one count of uttering threats to kill an animal or bird and one count of mischief endangering life, which has an appearance scheduled on Aug. 29.
