Grocery gangster saved by the cell

Booze and shrink-wrapped T-bone steaks didn’t interest serial shoplifter Gerilyn Canada.

No, when Canada and her on-again, off-again partner of 13 years, Bradley Manoakeesick, and other still-unidentified suspects hit the supermarket, it was laundry detergent pods and coffee that they prized and stuffed into their reusable shopping bags time and time again — highly-valued products easily sold to black-market customers struggling to keep their heads above water.

Canada, who a Winnipeg courtroom heard was “in the throes of drug addiction” during the three-month-long theft spree, pleaded guilty to a dozen counts of theft and two of assault and was sentenced Wednesday to 18 months in jail, plus two years supervised probation.

Canada, who had no prior criminal record, said being arrested saved her life.

“Even though the things I did (were) not right, I still don’t wish I could change it,” the 29-year-old mother of seven told provincial court Judge Don Slough.

“Because without doing the things, like being bad, I would not have come here. Coming to jail really saved me as a person, as a mom.”

“Coming to jail really saved me as a person, as a mom.”–Gerilyn Canada

Canada’s case sits at the intersection of addiction, poverty and crushing inflation.

Arrest reports provided to court allege Canada, along with Manoakeesick and other unidentified suspects, stole thousands of dollars worth of goods from major supermarkets across the city between December and March.

Arrest reports highlight over three dozen separate thefts. In 29 of the crimes, Canada — either in the company of Manoakeesick or other unnamed suspects — was seen to be stealing “selected laundry and coffee products.”

She and others targeted four supermarkets in one day.

On at least two occasions, Canada assaulted store loss-prevention officers to escape capture.

The supermarkets estimated their total losses to be approximately $14,000.

Police arrested Canada on March 20 at Portage Place in possession of “multiple reusable bags” filled with coffee and laundry pods, says the arrest report.

Interviewed by police, Canada admitted her involvement in the thefts, telling investigators she sold the stolen goods at bingos across the city.

According to a pre-sentence report provided to court, Canada, who is from Garden Hill First Nation, has a troubled personal history marked by loss (four of her six siblings are dead, one by suicide), addiction, poverty and domestic violence and “meets the criteria” for someone living with post-traumatic stress disorder.

Since being placed into custody, Canada has reconnected to her culture, made positive strides in addressing her addiction issues, recognized the need for further treatment and counselling and shown significant remorse for her actions, says the report.

“It’s refreshing to see a report with this much positivity in it,” said defence lawyer John Corona. “She gets it, she absolutely gets it.… This could be a real success story.”

“This could be a real success story.”–Defence lawyer John Corona

Supermarket loss-prevention officers go into work every day not knowing whether they are going to have to face someone with a knife or gun, said Crown attorney Scott Cooper.

“As serious as these offences are… I really get the feeling from reading this pre-sentence report that Ms. Canada understands that,” Cooper said.

“She has mental clarity now that she has got herself through the drug addiction,” he said. “I think she is arming herself with the types of tools that are going to allow her to be successful.”

Slough applauded Canada for her rehabilitative efforts.

“The volume of offences is a real concern in this community… but in this case I think Ms. Canada is not going to be a continuing problem.”

Canada received credit for time served, reducing her remaining sentence to just over 10 months.

Manoakeesick pleaded guilty to one count of robbery and one count of theft for his part in the shoplifting spree and was sentenced last month to nine months in jail and one year supervised probation.

“I don’t want to romanticize the relationship between him and Ms. Canada, but it is akin to (Depression-era U.S. outlaws) Bonnie and Clyde,” Crown attorney Nadine Vasas told court, describing retail theft in the city as an “epidemic.”

dean.pritchard@freepress.mb.ca