Three Kent inmates have each pleaded guilty to manslaughter, in a case dating back to 2008.
Terence Robert Bolton, Franjo (Frank) Perovic and Nicholas Adam St. Hilaire were involved in a melee at the maximum security prison near Agassiz on Nov. 13, 2008. Two unidentified inmates were sent to hospital and a third, Andrew Robert Craig, was pronounced dead at the scene.
In 2011, RCMP announced that four men were being charged with murder. St. Hilaire had since been released and was arrested. Perovic and Bolton were both still incarcerated. A fourth inmate, Scott Edward Sanderson, was charged but will face sentencing separately in September. All four men were in Kent as violent offenders; St. Hilaire for manslaughter and conspiracy to commit murder, Bolton for manslaughter, Perovic for first degree murder (and serving a life sentence), and Sanderson for aggravated assault.
At the time of Craig's death, the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team immediately took conduct of the murder investigation. In part, the investigation involved compiling a complete background investigation on all those involved in the incident as well as an extensive analysis of CCTV footage of the incident.
The trio pleaded guilty to manslaughter on Monday in New Westminster. Their sentencing hearing is scheduled for July 21, and they could receive anywhere from probation to life in prison for their charges.
Craig, who was 27 when killed, was serving 10 year sentence for robbery and had completed almost five years of the term.