Six men charged in prison riot

Six men charged in prison riot

By Monisha Martins – Maple Ridge News [British Columbia] – February 22, 2008

Six men charged in connection with a riot at a Maple Ridge prison last August remain in custody.

The men were among 31 inmates at Fraser Regional Correctional Centre who caused extensive damage to a living unit in the prison last year.

Donald Addley and Cash Vansanten have been charged with forcible prison break with intent to free themselves.

The pair, as well as Matt Conley, Peter Pete, Kyle Vaugan and Johnny Nguyen, also faces one count each of taking part in a riot.

Conley has also been charged with uttering threats.

Documents filed at the court registry show that Addley entered a guilty plea to the charges on Wednesday and has already been sentenced to five years in prison.

The others are scheduled to appear in court for bail hearings at the end of the month.

The charges stem from a riot at the prison on 256th Street that took three correctional tactical unit and 12 members of the RCMP’s emergency response team four hours to quell.

B.C. Corrections reported that 10 cells and a guard’s office were damaged during the incident.

It was the first of two riots at the provincial prison in the past six months.

B.C. Corrections is still investigating the latest riot, which happened on Feb. 9. No charges have been laid.

In that riot, 31 inmates housed in the remand section started destroying their cell block.

The incident started when three inmates refused to be transferred out of the block.

As the incident escalated, other inmates started small fires, broke windows, dislodged sinks and toilets, and kicked through doors, almost breaching a second cell block on the floor.

The prison was built in 1990 for 254 inmates. The facility is currently 72 over capacity, with most of the inmates doubled-bunked, two to a cell.

Next year, the facility will expand by 135 cells, to 389 from 254, requiring an addition to the building.

Construction is due to start in February 2009 and be complete by December 2010.

In the meantime, temporary housing for 100 inmates will be complete by May. That will be in the form of a large tent, as used in some U.S. prisons.