Iqaluit man guilty of attempting to murder RCMP member

A young Iqaluit man pleaded guilty Dec. 16 to the attempted murder of an RCMP officer, related to a shootout that occurred October 2009 in Apex.

At his court appearance in Iqaluit, Levi Nowdlak pleaded guilty to the attempted murder of Cst. Doug McFarlane and discharging a firearm with intent at Cst. David Wagner.

In exchange for Nowdlak’s guilty pleas, Crown prosecutor John Solski stayed a short list of lesser charges that Nowdlak also faced: assault with a weapon, uttering threats and other firearms-related charges.

Nowdlak’s lawyer Andrew Mahar, said he and the Crown will be ready to offer a joint submission for a sentence on April 11, 2011.

Mahar said their recommendation would likely ask for a sentence in the “higher end of the territorial range,” meaning no more than two years less a day after the date of sentencing.

According to police information released after Nowdlak’s arrest on Oct. 2, 2009, the incident began with a family dispute at an Apex home.

Nowdlak and another man fled to a location near the bridge over the Apex Creek and exchanged gunfire with police.

The two men eventually gave themselves up and no one was hurt.

The second man was released without charges.