Prince Albert Provincial Court. (Nigel Maxwell/paNOW Staff)

By Nigel Maxwell

Court proceedings

Not guilty pleas entered in Prince Albert ride sharing shooting incident

Jul 26, 2022 | 5:00 PM

A woman charged after a ride-sharing call in Prince Albert took a bad turn, has entered not guilty pleas and will face trial later this year.

Jeanique April, 28, was not present when her matters were discussed Tuesday afternoon at Prince Albert Provincial Court. On her behalf, April’s lawyer, Dale Blenner-Hasset, set a trial date for Dec. 13.

In connection to the incident that dates back to Jan, 4, 2021, April was charged with robbery with a firearm and assault causing bodily harm.

In the early morning hours, police responded to the 500 block of 22nd Street East after a report of a shooting. At the time, police indicated one man was taken to hospital with a gun shot wound to his back.

Speaking to paNOW on the condition of anonymity, the victim explained how he offered to provide two women in the city a ride through the Facebook group, P.A. Safe Rides.

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After multiple stops, including a trip to Sturgeon Lake, the driver arrived back at an address in the city’s East Hill area where a third person, a man, climbed into the back seat.

When the passengers asked to go to another location, the driver, explaining he was tired, declined. At that point, the victim claimed one of the women attempted to steal his keys.

Derek Cook, the man who had jumped into the vehicle, suddenly got out and moved to the driver’s side window where he stabbed the victim in the arm, and then threatened to kill him if he didn’t give them the truck. The driver responded by speeding off and Cook fired off a shot, hitting the victim in the back.

Roughly 400 m later, the driver pulled over and called an ambulance for help. He would then spend nearly three weeks in hospital, and to this day still has a bullet lodged in his rib.

Cook was sentenced in May of last year and received a four year prison term. As for April, she is currently not in custody after having been granted bail last May.

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nigel.maxwell@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @nigelmaxwell