North

Plea deal reached in K'atl'odeeche reserve assault and kidnapping case

Jerome Bruha was sentenced to six months in custody after he pleaded guilty to two charges: assault and breach of his probation conditions. The charges stem from a July 2018 incident involving Bruha and his then-girlfriend on the K'atl'odeeche First Nation.

Jerome Bruha was originally facing seven charges but pleaded guilty to two in a plea deal

Jerome Bruha has been sentenced to six months in jail after pleading guilty to charges stemming from an incident on the K'atl'odeeche First Nation reserve. (Jimmy Thomson/CBC)

A plea deal has been in reached in a kidnapping and assault case involving a 20-year-old Hay River man.

Jerome Bruha was sentenced to six months in custody after he pleaded guilty to two charges: assault and breach of his probation conditions.

The charges stem from a July 2018 incident involving Bruha and his then-girlfriend on the K'atl'odeeche First Nation.

Bruha originally pleaded not guilty to seven charges including kidnapping, breaking and entering, assault and carrying a weapon for the purpose of endangering the peace.

He was scheduled for a trial by judge alone in Hay River last week, but after the complainant testified in court, the defence and Crown reached a plea deal to withdraw five of the charges.

Bruha has several previous convictions for violent offences, five of them involve minors.

He is currently serving a two-year sentence for sexually assaulting a minor in an unrelated incident.

Bruha will be listed on a sex offender registry for 20 years.

With files from Kirsten Murphy