Former Saskatoon mayoral candidate charged with robbery, assault at motel in North Battleford, Sask.

A man who ran for mayor in Saskatoon in 2020 is one of three charged with armed robbery, assault and other offences after a robbery at a hotel in North Battleford, Sask.

Mark Zielke ran unsuccessfully for Saskatoon mayor in 2020, placing sixth in a field of six.

Zielke, 41, is accused alongside Tyson Moore, 44, and David Dominguez, 41, of robbing the Hitching Post Motel on Saturday night. The trio were arrested after RCMP stopped Zielke's white BMW X3 at the Borden Bridge, 50 kilometres northwest of Saskatoon.

Zielke appeared by video Wednesday in North Battleford provincial court. He made bail and is scheduled to return April 28.

Bail hearings for Moore and Dominguez are set on Thursday.

RCMP offered a narrative of events in a news release and supporting court documents.

Officers responded to the Hitching Post at about 10:40 p.m. CST on Saturday after reports of a robbery. They arrived to find a motel staffer injured and were told three suspects had made off with cash, electronics, ID and financial cards, according to the news release.

Cameras at the Lone Star Hotel next door captured the white BMW leaving the scene, staff told CBC.

RCMP stopped the car at the Borden Bridge and arrested the three men.

All three men are facing 14 charges related to the robbery.

The court documents allege Zielke had a loaded, unregistered Glock 19 handgun and a sword inside the car. He's also charged with confining and threatening to kill motel staff, and damaging the motel CCTV cameras.

It's alleged that he assaulted the motel staffer with a large ring. On his social media profile on X, Zielke is shown wearing an oversized ring with a Lady Justice insignia.

In addition to running for mayor, Zielke is well known in the local legal community for his advocacy work. Although he is not licensed in Saskatchewan as a practising lawyer, he offers to represent people in small claims and traffic court through his business, Living Sky Advocates. 

In 2019, a Court of Queen's Bench judge ordered Zielke to stop giving legal advice or acting for clients in court until he is licensed by the Law Society of Saskatchewan.

In 2021, Saskatchewan's Court of Appeal overruled that decision.