Police charge four men in weekend investigations
By Lethbridge Herald on December 2, 2025.
LETHBRIDGE POLICE SERVICE
Lethbridge Police have charged two males in connection with an assault where a 29-year-old man sustained serious injuries.
On Nov. 29, just after 9:30 a.m., police responded to a report of an assault involving multiple people fighting with weapons along the 700 block of 3 Avenue South. Upon arrival, officers located a male with head injuries. He was transported to hospital and later airlifted to Calgary with life-threatening injuries. He remains in hospital in stable condition.
Further investigation determined a group of males attacked the victim after he confronted them at an encampment. The parties involved are known to one another. Three subjects were identified and arrested without incident a short time later.
Marty Lee Fransen, 51, and Gabriel Justin Fransen, 25, both of Lethbridge, are charged with aggravated assault and assault with a weapon. Both were remanded in custody to appear in court today. The third subject was released without charges.
During the assault investigation, witnesses also reported two suspicious vehicles that had been observed in the area. Officers subsequently located one of the vehicles and initiated a traffic stop. The male driver and passenger were arrested and a search of the vehicle resulted in the seizure of approximately 633 doses of fentanyl, 627 doses of methamphetamine, just under $1,000 in cash and drug paraphernalia – scales and packaging. Police also seized multiple weapons including a BB handgun, batons and knives, but it was determined the subjects were not involved in the original assault.
Matthew Douglas Dragland, 39, of Lethbridge is charged with two counts of possession of a controlled substance for the purpose of trafficking, three counts of possession of a prohibited firearm/weapon and three counts of failing to comply with the conditions of a release order. Following a Judicial Interim Release hearing, Dragland was remanded in custody and is scheduled to appear in court Dec. 4.
Jeremy Mackenzie Toth, 39, is charged with two counts of possession of a controlled substance for the purpose of trafficking and three counts of failing to comply with a probation order. Toth was released from custody with conditions and is scheduled to appear in court Dec. 11.
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Glad to see they were able to arrest some of the offenders. I am also glad that the attack was not against a random person in the area who had nothing to do with the gangs or other druggies.
Random attacks against citizens rose this fall, but few were reported. When you allow people to live lawless, as we see in these encampments, that lawlessness often becomes more brazen, and they not only attack people they know, but a person just walking down the street. Without deterents, crime increases!
I have witnessed and even taken pictures of groups of people with weapons such as chains, pipes, hockey sticks cut down, knifes, and even a gun ( not sure if BB, or real ) and other fashioned types of weapons going after others several times in my neighbourhood in the last couple of years.
Violence in encampments are common as well, as are sexual assaults, thefts, weapons, and stolen goods! There are not safer than a shelter as they try to state when asked why they won’t stay in the shelter. The won’t stay in the shelter because they can’t commit crimes in the shelter . . . the encampments are the base of operations!
The shelter had plenty of space this last few months, yet the encampments nearby continued with sometimes about 100 people.
They to in to clean the encampments up with a large group of assigned police, outreach workers and clean up crews every few weeks, but leave without barricading off the areas or having security make sure they don’t return, and within hours the encampment are back! What a waste of manpower and tax dollars!!!!!!!!!!
Don’t believe the random attacks comment? Read;
https://www.lethbridgepolice.ca/news/posts/proactive-investigation-links-violent-incidents-four-people-charged/
Many of the random attacks were never reported in the news and for some reason there appears to be media avoiding reporting the incidents.
Good to see LPS made the arrests in the targeted attacks in this case!
I’m guessing all if not most of those shared in this one instance have previous convictions for similar crimes. This time, if convicted, they will be given a slap on the wrist or minimal jail time then be released to recommit more crimes. Our judicial system needs a major overhaul so repeat offenders of serious crimes and drug trafficking receive much harsher sentences which include mandatory counseling and release conditions.