Gang member gets 11 years for paralyzing attack on rival

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This article was published 23/12/2014 (4159 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A Winnipeg gang associate has been sentenced to 11 years in prison for a pair of violent attacks – including one which left a criminal rival permanently paralyzed.

Tyler Kowal, 27, pleaded guilty Tuesday to the separate December 2013 incidents as part of a plea bargain struck with the Crown.

Kowal is a member of the Redlined Crew, known as the so-called “puppet club” for the Manitoba Hells Angels. He admits shooting a 24-year-old man in the neck as he sat inside his vehicle parked outside a West Kildonan apartment block.

The victim – a member of the Manitoba Warriors gang – had agreed to meet with Kowal that day for the purpose of a drug deal.

But things turned violent when the man produced a bag of flour, instead of the agreed-upon bag of cocaine. Kowal pulled out a Glock 9-mm pistol and fired at least six shots. The victim slumped over the steering wheel, sending his vehicle into drive and crashing into a number of parked cars on Partridge Avenue before hitting a fence.

He was rushed to hospital in critical condition and will never fully recover.

“He can feel some of his limbs but will be confined to a wheelchair the rest of his life,” said Crown attorney Rustyn Ullrich.

Kowal fled the scene and wasn’t immediately arrested. Five days later, he forced his way inside a Boyd Avenue rooming house for the purpose of collecting a drug debt from the occupants. Kowal beat a male resident with a hammer, dragged the man’s girlfriend around by her hair and ultimately stole $1,000 in crystal meth and more than $800 cash.

Police arrested Kowal on Jan. 2, 2014 for both incidents. He has remained in custody ever since.

The Crown dropped more serious charges of attempted murder in relation to the shooting Tuesday, citing major potential problems with their case. Specifically, the paralyzed victim has refused to utter a single word about what happened.

“The police speak to him. He does not speak back,” said Ullrich. A second man who was in the vehicle at the time and escaped serious injury has also refused to co-operate.

“That left us with a giant gap in terms of what we know and what we could prove,” said Ullrich.

The Crown agreed to a sentence of 11 years, which is much less than what they would have sought had the matter gone to trial. But defence lawyer Mike Cook told court Tuesday his client is also giving up the chance of an outright acquittal by pleading guilty.

Kowal maintains he never went to either incident with the idea of hurting anyone.

“This is a classic example of a drug deal going very, very wrong,” said Cook. He said Kowal believes he was going to be shot if he didn’t fire first, claiming he saw the victim had a gun inside his vehicle. Police never did recover a firearm.

Kowal read a brief apology in court Tuesday, aimed at both his victims and his own family which includes a wife and two young children.

“I want you to know I am truly sorry. There is no excuse for what I’ve done,” he said. Kowal vowed to spend the upcoming years behind bars improving his education while severing all gang-related ties “to ensure one day I’m not the monster you see today.”

Provincial court Judge Murray Thompson said this case involved a “chilling level of violence” which must be denounced.