A man who used a screwdriver to threaten a pair of clerks at a Kaleden gas station, who were attempting to recover stolen items, will stay in jail despite getting a time-served sentence.
Kael Svendsen, 27, pleaded guilty and was sentenced in Penticton Provincial Court on Aug. 8 for one count of theft under $5,000 and one count of possessing a weapon for a dangerous purpose.
On July 30, 2023, Svendsen and an unnamed woman entered the Kaleden Petrocan's convenience store.
The woman engaged the clerk in conversation while Svendsen selected merchandise from the convenience store shelves.
Svendsen left without paying, and put the merchandise into a waiting truck before getting in. The woman then exited the store, followed by the two clerks.
The clerks attempted to keep the woman from reaching the truck and leaving, with one beginning to grab some of the merchandise from the truck.
Svendsen then got out of the vehicle, brandishing the screwdriver that was believed to have been used to turn the truck's ignition.
The clerks retreated with most of the merchandise recovered, and the couple got into the truck and left. They were arrested the next day by Summerland RCMP.
While he received time served, Svendsen will stay in custody as he has additional charges in Surrey and Revelstoke that are proceeding through court system, with one trial scheduled for February of 2025.
The Surrey charges are under a publication ban, and he is charged with possession of stolen property, breach of release and two counts of resisting or obstructing a peace officer for an incident on Nov. 14, 2023 in Canyon Hot Springs.
According to court records he also has a scheduled court appearance in Penticton on Aug. 12 related to charges of resisting or obstructing a peace officer and possession of a firearm while prohibited, from an alleged incident on May 26, 2023.
Svendsen received a six month jail sentence, which amounts to 180 days that will be removed from the 400 days of credit he has accrued since being taken into custody in November of 2023.
