The target of a gang-related take down that led to a large seizure of guns and drugs will learn today how much more time he will spend behind bars.
Eric James Fike, 31, faces at least a further 18 months in jail and as much as four-and-a-half more years depending on the decision provincial court judge Michael Gray reaches after hearing submissions from legal counsel and pleas from parents and relatives on Tuesday at the Prince George courthouse.
Fike has been in custody for nearly 18 months since he was arrested Sept. 24, 2010, two days after an RCMP officer saw a vehicle Fike was in turn off Highway 16 West onto Lower Mud River Road, about five kilometres west of city limits and then stop at a remote wooded area.
After Fike and a woman who was driving the vehicle left the scene, RCMP called in a police dog who found a backpack under a fallen tree and covered with some brush.
Inside was a submachine gun, a nine-millimetre handgun, a .45 calibre handgun and about 50 rounds of ammunition, and eight ounces of cocaine.
Police set up a round-the-clock surveillance and two days later Fike returned to the scene with the woman, who was never charged.
A subsequent search of the vehicle uncovered a machete and when police searched the couple's home in the 6100 block of Gauthier Road they found two more ounces of cocaine; paraphernalia and ingredients to make crack cocaine; roughly three pounds of marijuana; more ammunition; and flaps of heroin.
At the time of his arrest, police described Fike as a high-ranking member of the Game Tight Soldiers, a street-level gang that runs the cocaine trade in conjunction with the Renegades biker gang, a Hells Angels
puppet club.
But Fike has changed his ways, the court was told Tuesday. He has obliterated a tattoo on his ankle identifying him as a gangster and now wants to get out of the life and be a father to his daughter.
Fike was described as someone who had learning difficulties and low self esteem and tended to be picked on as a youth - sparking a pattern that has carried over into his adult life.
"During his young school years, Eric was bullied extensively and his reaction to that was basically to become friends with the bullies in order to fight them off," defence lawyer Keith Aartsen said.
Following a drawn-out process that saw him lose his first lawyer before Aartsen took over the case, Fike pleaded guilty to three charges of possession of a prohibited weapon and two counts of trafficking related to the cocaine and marijuana.
As for the heroin, Fike was using about a gram-and-a-half per day, the court was told, and charges related to its possession were stayed. Police have said 159 flaps of heroin were found in the house.
Fike's parents and two aunts urged Gray to go easy on him, saying he was an excellent employee when he worked at a care home and a "gentle giant" who has been taking better care of himself, losing more than 50 pounds since he's been in custody.
They also said Fike has been subjected to intimidation while in custody and will be released into a supportive environment where he'll have the best chance for rehabilitation.
When asked if he had anything to say, Fike said he did not think his parents would ever offer such support again. "I think this is my last chance," Fike said.
Fike was convicted on similar charges in Vancouver in 2004, Crown counsel Charles Hough noted. "The problem is, history can repeat itself," Hough said.
Fike faces at least three years in jail less time served in custody and Hough is seeking six years less time served. Gray reserved decision until this afternoon.
