The Parole Board of Canada has given a federal parolee who has been operating an antiques store in Prince George permission to move to Vancouver Island.
Patrick Kelly, a former Mountie who was convicted of first degree murder of his wife, must remain on day parole and life in a halfway house, according to a board decision issued May 5 and made public Tuesday. The name of the community where Kelly will live was not provided.
Kelly, 66, had opened his store in Prince George in 2010 after he was granted full parole. But the board reversed his release in November 2012 after he failed to report two relationships with women.
In June 2014, he was granted day parole once again and moved back to Prince George and reopened his store. He's remained on day parole with overnight leave privileges granted in November 2014.
Kelly has since found a girlfriend and has wanted to follow her to the Island, according to the decision.
As of Tuesday, his 100-block Kingston Street business appears closed although there is still furniture inside the store. A sign posted on the door says Kelly is now "in and out" of the city and provides ways to contact him.
The report also mentions an alleged April 12 armed robbery at the store. It says Kelly reported to police that a man tried to rob him by pointing a gun at his head. A shot was fired into a wall and the suspect took off while Kelly was not injured.
Robert Thomas Taylor, 65, was later arrested at an East Perry Road home and continues to face charges from the alleged incident.
Kelly's parole was suspended for a short time, but his release was renewed after a police investigation found he was the victim of a robbery.
Concerns about Kelly's behaviour continue to be raised however.
When his cellphone was reviewed, the search found a number of texts from potential customers indicating that the transaction would be "local and cash only." That's a concern because among the conditions Kelly must live by is one to provide financial documentation to his parole supervisor and it appeared he may be trying to hide some of them by doing cash only deals.
The board also noted a lack of credibility in his explanation for a November 2015 attempt to initiate a relationship with a female customer and an "arrogant description" of the Correctional Service of Canada as a "ship of fools."
While not elevating his risk to reoffend to an undue level, the board suggested Kelly give those concerns reflection if he wished to remain in the community. "You are a convicted murder with a problematic release history, so it would be wise, in the Board's view, for you to rein in your arrogance and guard against returning to your old pattern of thinking," the board said in its report.
The former undercover officer was convicted in 1983 of first degree murder for causing his wife to fall off the 17th-floor balcony of their Toronto apartment in March 1981.
Kelly has always claimed innocence although her injuries were inconsistent with the fall. He was also involved in extra-marital affairs and was having financial difficulties from living an extravagant lifestyle at the time, according to the decision.
He was first granted day parole in 2003.
