A young man with a "horrific" record has been hit with a fresh six-year prison sentence following a drug-fuelled crime spree through the South Okanagan that involved three stolen vehicles.
Dillan John Andre Cote, 23, appeared via videoconference Monday in provincial court in Penticton and pleaded guilty to two counts of theft of a motor vehicle and single charges of theft under $5,000 and robbery.
A federal parolee, he committed the crimes while on the loose after failing to return to a halfway home in Prince George.
His new prison term will begin once he's finished serving an existing sentence for robberies on Vancouver Island that expires in 2019.
Court heard Cote was on parole when he and his girlfriend and co-accused, Michelle Mercier, began a string of crimes Dec., 13, 2016, by stealing $60 worth of merchandise from a Cranbrook store.
That evening a woman picked them up and allowed them to stay overnight. When she woke up her car was gone. It was located a few hours later at a collision scene in Christina Lake. Cote and Mercier were nowhere to be found.
After stealing and crashing a second vehicle down an embankment on Highway 3 near Osoyoos, a mother of three driving her children to school stopped to see if the pair was alright.
Cote pulled her out of the minivan in front of her children, the eldest of which was 12. The kids were left unharmed on the side of the road with their mother.
The van turned up later at the hospital in Oliver, where police quickly tracked Cote to a trailer in the community.
He and Mercier were arrested following an eight-hour standoff with an RCMP Emergency Response Team.
In arguing for a sentence of up to seven years, Crown counsel Ann Lerchs noted Cote had 46 prior criminal convictions.
"For a young man of his age, Mr. Cote's record is horrific," she said.
Lerchs added that the victims were random, and Cote "was essentially preying on their generosity."
"A few people who won't be Good Samaritans anymore," agreed Judge Gale Sinclair.
Defence counsel Robert Maxwell told the court Cote's life of criminality stemmed from a difficult upbringing that saw him shuffled between foster homes and selling drugs by 13.
"He's probably spent more time in than out (of jail), but (the Crown) is right," said Maxwell. "Denunciation is a big factor here. The court has to assure the public."
In a prepared statement, Cote admitted he'd gone nearly a week without sleep and was under the influence of crack cocaine and meth at the time of the offences.
He said he regretted everything he did, especially frightening the children.
"I've done many reckless and thoughtless crimes, but this one involving the children is really bothering me," the statement said.
Maxwell suggested a sentence of five years, but the judge concluded Cote needed more time than that to be rehabilliated.
"We need to separate Mr. Cote from society for a time that is long enough, so when he does be released he can live a law-abiding life," said Sinclair.
"He's got 23 years of life behind him and he hasn't done that yet."
Mercier is due in court for sentencing August 23.
