Accused caught in the act during restaurant break and enter

By Delon Shurtz - Lethbridge Herald on February 3, 2023.

LETHBRIDGE HERALDdshurtz@lethbridgeherald.com

Little did John Leslie Twigg know that while he and another person were plundering a downtown restaurant, the owner was watching their every move.

The two individuals broke into the Streetside Eatery at about 2 a.m. on March 22 of last year, and set off an alarm that alerted the alarm company, which alerted the owner who could see the culprits through his security cameras.

He called the police, who arrived with a canine unit and caught the two individuals in the act.

“Mr. Twigg and one other person were still actually inside the restaurant; in fact Mr. Twigg was located hiding under a desk in the office,” Crown Prosecutor Clayton Giles said Monday in Lethbridge provincial court, where Twigg pleaded guilty to a charge of break and enter.

Twigg, 27, also pleaded guilty to charges of drug possession, possession of stolen credit cards, possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose, possession of stolen property under $5,000, and failure to comply with release conditions.

On Oct. 30 of last year police responded to a report of car prowling, and found Twigg and another person who matched the description of the suspects. Twigg, police discovered, was subject to a curfew at the time and was supposed to be in his residence about 30 minutes before he was arrested.

During a search police found some methamphetamine, a pocket knife, a straight razor and two credit cards belonging to another person.

On April 8 of last year Twigg was caught “squatting” inside an empty residence, and while police were talking to him they noticed a rifle stock hidden inside his pants and partly concealed by his jacket. The gun was actually an air rifle, but still considered dangerous to the public peace, Giles said.

The rifle, Giles added, had been stolen during a recent break-in only three days earlier.

Twigg, who has a criminal record with convictions for assault with a weapon, theft, using stolen credit cards and possession of stolen property, was sentenced to a total of seven months in jail, consecutive to a sentence he is already serving.

Additional charges of being disguised with intent and carrying a concealed weapon were withdrawn.

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