Alberta man gets 3 years for burning 'snitch' onto man's chest with torch, knife

An Alberta man who burned "snitch" on his captive's chest has been sentenced to three years in prison.

Darren Curtis Lagrelle, 20, pleaded guilty Monday to forcible confinement and aggravated assault in Red Deer Court of Queen's Bench.

Crown prosecutor Ann MacDonald said Lagrelle held another man at rifle point in a room at Red Deer's Alladin Motor Inn onJuly 30, 2015.

Lagrelle demanded to know if the man had snitched on another person years before.

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He took the man into the bathroom and used a knife and a torch to burn the word "snitch" into the man's chest.

The man's ordeal ended when RCMP, who had been looking to arrest Lagrelle on outstanding warrants, descended on the room.

The three-year sentence was a joint submission by the Crown prosecutor and Lagrelle's lawyer Norm Clair.

'Reasonable offer'

Lagrelle who was 19 at the time of the offences, has a lengthy criminal record including 58 convictions.

Clair said his client co-operated fully with police.

"He held nothing from them," he said.

The three-year sentence was a "reasonable offer" by the Crown, which he recommended his client accept, he said.

Lagrelle, who has been in custody since the incident, was given credit for 867 days in pre-trial custody leaving him with 228 days to serve.

He must also provide a DNA sample to a national crime database and was given a lifetime weapons ban.

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