Accused in Iqaluit homicide was free on release order

MICHAELA RODRIGUE

IQALUIT — An Iqaluit man facing charges of first degree murder has also been charged with violating promises made to the court while awaiting trial on a five-month old charge of assaulting the Iqaluit woman he is now accused of killing.

Kootoo Korgak, 32, was charged Feb. 11 with first degree murder in connection with the death last week of Inusiq Sarah Akavak, his common-law wife.

An RCMP press release issued Feb. 16 says that Akavak died of “injuries consistent with strangulation.” Her body had been flown to Edmonton last weekend for an autopsy.

Akavak, 39, was the mother of a five-year-old girl. Police handed the girl over to the care of social services workers shortly after finding her mother lying dead inside their apartment in Iqaluit’s eight-storey high-rise building at about 2 a.m., Feb. 10.

At around the same time, police arrested Korgak, took him into custody and eventually charged him with first degree murder. Police would not say whether or not Korgak turned himself in voluntarily.

Court documents show that about five months before, on Sept. 5, 1999, Iqaluit RCMP charged Iqaluit resident Kootoo Korgak with assault, and that the complainant was Inusiq Sarah Akavak.

Court documents also show that between the laying of the assault charge in September and the laying of the murder charge last weekend, Korgak was accused of breaching a promise not to drink alcohol.

Despite the apparent evidence suggesting that he may have violated the conditions of his release, Korgak was allowed to remain free and was not taken into custody until after his common-law wife turned up dead.

After the Sept. 5 assault charge, Korgak had been released from custody after a court appearance Sept. 8.

The conditions of his release on the assault charge were that he report to the John Howard Society every day from Monday to Friday, report to the RCMP detachment every Saturday between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., refrain from possessing or using alcohol, and to keep the peace and maintain good behaviour. He was also required to attend court on Oct. 18.

On Nov. 20, court documents say, Korgak was charged under Section 145 (3) of the Criminal Code with breaching a condition of his release — a recognizance that he refrain from the possession or use of alcohol.

But Korgak was allowed to go free. He was told to attend court on Dec. 6, 1999, to keep the peace and maintain good behaviour, to abstain from alcohol and other intoxicating substances, and to not attend a licensed establishment.

Korgak’s assault charge went before the court on seven different dates. Korgak’s case was repeatedly held over because he did not have a lawyer, court documents state. It is not clear why it took so long for him to get legal aid.

Then, on Jan. 31, Korgak finally appears to have recieved legal aid. On that date, defence lawyer Markus Weber, acting on behalf of Iqaluit lawyer Euan MacKay, requested that Korgak’s case be adjourned until Feb. 28.

After being charged with first degree murder, Korgak was later charged with failing to keep the peace and be of good behaviour, especially towards Inusiq Akavak, and failure to refrain from possession or use of alcohol.

He was also charged with failing to show up on court on Jan. 14, 2000. It’s not clear which charge the Jan. 14 court appearance would have related to.

The September assault charge is also still before the courts, the documents say.

Korgak, 32, a small, slight man, sat quietly with his head held down during a brief court appearance held Feb. 15 to set a date for his show cause hearing.

Korgak’s case was set over to Feb. 24. Justice Beverly Browne said the other charges that Korga is facing will be spoken to at that time as well. He will be held in police custody until that time.

Akavak’s body was sent to Edmonton last weekend, where an autopsy was performed. Police will not release the exact cause of Akavak’s death until the autopsy report is complete, Staff Sgt. Jim McDougall said.

Police placed Akavak’s five-year-old daughter in the care of social workers shortly after the incident.

McDougall would not say who reported Akavak’s death and who told police to go to her apartment on the morning of Feb. 10.