ARTS BUSINESS Al4 CALENDAR All CLASSIFIEDS A20 COMMUNITY AQ GARDENING A16 OPINION AT SPORTS A17 OUTDOORS Al2 BEYER CROSS GRENBY HAMPSON HENGEN ~A18 LANG A16 TOP OF THE PILE A7 WALLBERG A19 AT A9 Al4 Al2 TANIERS MOBBIES @ CRAFRS Scale Models = Railway Rockets Paints > Glue - Tools Reference Books - Balsa Plus A Complete Line of Craft Supplies 2471 BEACON, SIDNEY OPEN 7 DAYS A WEEK Serving the Peninsula for 80 Years 1912 - 1992 Audited Circulation 12,762 A Victoria Weeklies Publication Wednesday, January 22,1992 40¢ Loaded shoigun found after Brentwood chase GRIZZLIES AND WHALES A Sidney Museum slide show features assorted sea animals in natural | Canadian environments Page A7 AMAZING BIRD BEAKS They are a mulftpurpoese tool, attached fo ine body Page Al2 WHAT IS HERITAGE? That’s the first step for groups that want funds from ihe Heritage Trust Page Al3 MINOR HOCKEY WEEK More kids means more fun for players in the Peninsula Hockey Assoc. Page A17 CRIMESTOPPERS SINCE *84 Over $4.5 million in propery and drugs seized in Greater Victoria since Ome Stoppers started Page B1 Victoria WEEKUES Review Office Hours - The Review office, at 9726 First St. in Sidney, is open from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. Mail to Box 2070, Sidney, B.C. V8L 3S5. Arsonist ‘fell through the cracks’ Arsonists go to jail — but Victoria provincial court Judge Brian McKenzie made an excep- tion Jan. 14; sentencing 28-year- old Earl Aitken to three years’ probation after the Mayne Island man pleaded guilty to arson. “Tn tespect to arson cases, the first consideration in almost every case is the length of incarcera- tion,’ McKenzie said. But he found the circumstances surrounding Aitken’s crime so unusual, he agreed with a pre- sentence report recommending probation instead of jail. The detailed report suggested Aitken and a younger brother had grown up almost unsupervised on Mayne Island, at times living in the bush and scavenging for food. “To say Mr. Aitken has suffered from a most unique and dysfunc- uional upbringing is an understate- ment,’ McKenzie remarked. - Defence lawyer Brad Hickford said Aitken received no help until he was 18-years-old, despite recommendations for assistance dating back 10 years. “His tragic history speaks for itself. He is an individual who has fallen through the cracks of society.” Hickford noted the Aitken fam- ily was shunned by the Mayne Island community and deliberately isolated by the father, who blocked efforts to help the children. As a result, Hickford said Ait- ken did not have the social skills to cope with a perceived rejection by his one-time counselor William Bender — and retaliated by setting a fire in Bender’s Mayne Island home June 1. Crown counsel Stephen Fudge said Bender discovered the fire when he retumed home about 11 p.m. Aitken’s artwork had been removed from the home, Fudge said. Aitken admitted starting the fire when questioned by police June 4. He plead guilty to arson and mischief charges in Sidney provin- cial court Nov. 13. The mischief charges were laid after Aitken made two calls to the 9-1-1 emergency number, one on May 11 and one on May 28. Each time, Aitken claimed William Bender of Mayne Island had been murdered. The first call, made from a public telephone on Mayne Island, prompted a police officer to take a boat single-handed through heavy seas to Mayne Island, Fudge said. Aitken was arrested by police while making the second call from a public phone booth in Sidney. Bender described the telephone calls as a “call for help’’ from Aitken. Although he does not feel threatened, he wants no further contact with Aitken. The fire caused thousands of dollars worth of damage and dest- royed many personal possessions, Bender said. It was seven months before he could move back into his home. Psychological testing of Aitken since his arrest shows normal intelligence and no sign of psycho- sis, Hickford said. “The only thing that was found to be delusional were his ideas about Mr. Bender.” Counselling over the past seven months has helped Aitken gain better social skills, Hickford said. ““He’s come miles. There are very strong indications that he has tried to deal with these things.” Fudge agreed, noting that Ait- ken misinterpreted a relationship with a Victoria Streetlink employee in December — and sought help. “When he got into that situation he recognized that he should talk to somebody about it and did talk to somebody about it,” Fudge said. He agreed Aitken should not go Continued on Page A2 _A fully loaded sawed-off Remington 12-gauge pump-action shotgun and about 50 packs of cigarettes were found inside a stolen vehicle after a Central Saa- nich police constable chased it from Brentwood Bay to the But- chart Gardens area about 5:07 a.m. Friday. The incident began when Cst. Sherryl Yaciansky attempted to stop a grey 1989 Chev Tracker for a bummed out headlight as it was southbound on West Saanich Road through Brentwood. The Tracker failed to stop and continued to Benvenuto Avenue, where it turned westbound and accelerated until a locked gate was encountered. “The vehicle ran into the bushes and two people bolted, one going east and one going west,” deputy police Chief George Lawson said. A third person also got out of the vehicle to run but was grabbed by Yaciansky. In the ensuing strug-- gle, Yaciansky’s finger was broken and the suspect escaped, Lawson said. Other police departments were called in for assistance, including police dogs from Colwood RCMP. and Saanich police. About 6:50 a.m. the Colwood police dog located an individual in the Butchart parking lot area. Arrested was Patrick Drew Wilson, 19 of Nanaimo. The Tracker was taken to the police office and it was discovered to be stolen from a Departure Bay residence in Nanaimo sometime after 10:30 p.m. Thursday, Lawson said. Later, another suspect was arrested. Esquimalt police unde- Tgoing a related investigation detained Kirk Martin Kelley, 18 of no fixed address. He is believed to have been a passenger on the Tracker. Both men appeared in Victoria court Monday and were scheduled tO appear again today. Police were following leads Monday and anticipated locating the third suspect. Butchart Gar- dens opened late Friday as police had the area cordoned off. sy Cech oad the ‘contractor tas already arranged for an insurance adjuster fo visit the site. : However he ao the ae was “preity minor. ” ai