A Prince George man at risk of deportation to South Africa pleaded guilty Thursday to two counts from a driving incident that saw him leading police on a wild ride in the Hart nearly two-and-a-half years ago.
Francois Christiaan Meerholz, 24, was sentenced to 90 days in jail and a three-year driving prohibition after pleading guilty to driving while impaired and dangerous driving under the Criminal Code.
It's doubtful the outcome will be enough to force Meerholz out of the country. Although police have linked him to local gang activity, he has yet be convicted of a crime for which he has been sentenced to more than six months in jail or for which the maximum penalty is at least 10 years in jail, the thresholds for deportation by Canada Border Services Agency.
The maximums for the two charges he pleaded guilty to, plus a third charge of fleeing a peace officer that was stayed, is five years.
However, Meerholz continues to face several charges from three other cases, most notably kidnapping, forcible confinement and aggravated assault from an alleged April incident in Ferndale. They carry maximums ranging from five to 14 years.
The charges Meerholz pleaded guilty to Thursday stem from a July 7, 2010 incident when at 4:15 a.m. a Prince George RCMP member in a marked police vehicle saw a grey BMW speed through a stop sign at South Kelly Road as it headed east on Handlen Road.
The officer activated his lights and siren and start a pursuit but Meerholz, the driver and sole occupant, sped up and went through a red light at Highway 97, turned north onto the highway and cut off a pickup truck forcing it into an abrupt stop to avoid a collision.
As he headed north, Meerholz accelerated to more than 130 km/h and the officer, who had recognized the car as Meerholz's, shut down the pursuit but saw the car turn onto Chief Lake Road and then Sabyam Road before losing sight.
The officer drove along the stretch looking into each driveway and at 7929 Sabyam Road saw the BMW with its taillights on. When he drove into the driveway, Meerholz got out and began running but then stopped an put his hands in the air while the officer drew his pistol.
"As Mr. Meerholz went down to his knees, he commented that he 'don't got nothing' presumably referring to a weapon but then said 'I was just drunk driving,'" Crown prosecutor Shannon Keyes told Prince George provincial court judge Darrell O'Byrne.
Prior to pleading guilty, Meerholz's criminal record contained 10 convictions and a "fairly lengthy" record of driving offences, although it was also noted that his blood-alcohol content was .09, only slightly above the legal limit, when arrested.
Meerholz, and his younger brother, Dillan, 22, were born in South Africa but were adopted by an aunt and uncle when they were nine and seven years old respectively, so they could move to a better life in Canada, the court was told.
But after one year, they were put in separate foster homes and by the time he became an adult, Francois had lived in three foster homes and four group homes.
"He had a troubled upbringing," defence lawyer Rob Climie said adding the boys were effectively "abandoned" within a year of being moved to Canada.
However, their citizenships remain South African and, if found guilty of a crime serious enough, they will be candidates for deportation.
In September, Prince George resident Brett Reece Alderman, 38, was deported to the United Kingdom, even though he had lived in Canada since he was three weeks old, after CBSA determined he did not have Canadian citizenship and was sentenced to 18 months house arrested for two theft-related offences.
Both Meerholzes remain in custody on charges related to the April allegations that involved a reported kidnapping and assault of a man at a home with a small marijuana grow operation on Upper Fraser Road. Michael Andrew Joseph Fitzgerald, 33, and Craig Anthony Niedermayer, 36, also remain in custody on charges related to the alleged incident.
