A Prince George man was sentenced Thursday to 5 1/2 years in prison for pistol whipping a woman while leading a drug-related home invasion.
Less credit for time served prior to sentencing, Zacharie Xavier Paul Bock, 32, has three years left to serve for the July 17, 2018 incident.
Shortly before midnight, two men and a woman, all wearing bandanas to mask their faces, burst into a 4200-block Davis Road home, where three adults and three children were living, according to a summary of the events read into the court record.
A husband and wife sleeping in an upstairs bedroom were ordered to lie on the floor and were covered with a blanket before the trio turned their attention to a woman sleeping in the basement.
Bock pointed a handgun at her and demanded her cellphone. When she refused to hand it over, Bock hit her over the back of her head with the gun and continued to do so as she fought back, leaving her with a gash that required staples to heal.
The culprits were able to get the cellphone from her, along with two televisions, a laptop, an assortment of jewellery and some of one of the children's prescription medication.
RCMP were called to the scene as soon as the three had left and police were able to "ping" the cellphone, or use it to track the culprits to a 2200-block Lisgar Crescent home where police found a pickup truck on the front lawn and backed up to a window.
They found the stolen items in the home and a .22-calibre handgun in a backpack Bock admitted to owning. At first, he claimed he found it while walking near Pine Centre Mall but eventually confessed to RCMP and took responsibility for carrying out the crime.
Despite the bandana, the woman who had been pistol whipped recognized Bock but was unable to identify the other two. The robbery had been carried out, the court was told, because the woman's boyfriend, who was in jail at the time, owed a $3,000 drug debt.
The sentence came in the form of a joint submission from Crown and defence counsels. Bock was issued the mandatory minimum of five years for committing a home invasion and an additional six months for possessing a firearm contrary to an order.
In victim impact statements, the husband and wife said the crime left them deeply traumatized. They also said they were also at risk of losing their children to the Ministry of Children and Family Development and ended up moving out of the home and living in hotel rooms for a time.
But working in Bock's favour, he pleaded guilty to four counts on the day a trial was to begin. It had been scheduled to last six weeks and 41 witnesses were scheduled to testify.
He has also taken significant steps to turn his life around in the time he has been in custody at Prince George Regional Correctional Centre. He's now housed in PGRCC's "clean and sober" unit, has completed 16 programs and recently received his high school graduation diploma and received a note of commendation from PGRCC's warden.
Bock, who appeared to be in the range of six feet tall, weighed just 145 pounds when he was arrested and now weighs 280, the court heard. Lawyer Brian Gilson said his client was an "angry man" when he was first arrested and is now much happier and healthier.
"He's healthy, he's solid as a rock, he's strong and he smiles," Gilson said.
A troubled upbringing for Bock was described to the court. He spent his formative years in the VLA where he lived in a household where food was scarce and drugs and alcohol were rampant. At just 12 years old, Bock was hooked on drugs and by age 14 was dealing as a way to make enough money to buy food, the court was told.
Bock, who apologized to the court for his action, continues to take medication for a bipolar disorder and counselling for anger management.
