Nunavut man convicted of killing RCMP officer granted temporary day parole

A Nunavut man convicted of killing an RCMP officer will be released on temporary day parole, according to a decision from the Parole Board of Canada. 

Pingoatuk Kolola was convicted of first-degree murder for killing 20-year-old RCMP Const. Douglas Scott in Kimmirut in 2007. 

Scott was responding to a drunk driving complaint when Kolola, who was intoxicated, shot him. 

Kolola, who is now 54, has been in prison since his trial in 2010. 

In Canada, people sentenced to life in prison are eligible for parole after 25 years. 

A two-and-a-half-day hearing was held in Kimmirut last year where a jury decided Kolola should be allowed to apply for early parole. 

In a June 18 decision, the Parole Board of Canada denied Kolola full parole, granting instead day parole for six months. 

The decision says the board also considered statements from people close to Scott. The names of those people are redacted from the decision, as is Scott's name. 

The statements talk about how they still feel pain and that they still believe Kolola is a risk to the public. 

"There is nothing that can repair her loss and she finds it unjust that you could be free while she endures pain," the decision reads, referring to one of those statements. 

The board also said Kolola is at a high to medium risk for future violence, with the risk higher if he started consuming alcohol again. 

Kolola has stayed sober since 2018. 

The board also noted that while in prison, Kolola completed his Grade 12 equivalency and has gone from being assessed a maximum-security offender to a minimum-security offender and completed several rehabilitation programs. 

Kolola will live at a residential facility while on day parole, the name of which is redacted from the decision. 

Kolola must also not consume drugs or alcohol and must not contact the victim's immediate family.

The decision says he does not intend to return to his home community.