A London man who skipped his sentencing after being convicted in a shooting and a home invasion faces a new charge of tampering with his electronic monitoring bracelet, court records show.
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A London man who skipped his sentencing after he was convicted in a shooting and home invasion faces a new charge of tampering with his electronic monitoring bracelet, court records show.
Brandon Ford, 31, pleaded guilty in July to discharging a firearm, robbery with a weapon, breaching probation and two counts of breaching a release order. The charges stem from a March 1, 2023, shooting outside a London variety store and an unrelated Feb. 6, 2023, home invasion.
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Ontario Court Justice Kevin McHugh agreed to release Ford on bail ahead of his Aug. 21 sentencing hearing after defence lawyer Keli Mersereau asked he be freed to spend time with family and get his affairs in order.
McHugh ordered Ford to wear an electronic monitoring bracelet, a GPS-enabled tracking device that attaches to the ankle of a person while on bail or after release from custody.
But Ford didn’t show up for sentencing and London police obtained a warrant for his arrest.
Ford, who turned himself in to police two days later, was charged with three additional offences: mischief, failing to attend court and failing to comply with a release order.
The mischief charge is for allegedly “tampering” with his GPS tracking bracelet, court documents say.
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This isn’t the first time a Londoner convicted in a shooting has tampered with their GPS tracking bracelet and gone on the lam.
In 2019, Ali Fageer pleaded guilty to manslaughter in the March 19, 2015, shooting death of Mark McCullagh and was freed on bail pending sentencing on condition he wore a GPS tracking bracelet.
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But Fageer cut off the ankle bracelet in a Toronto street and disappeared until May 24, 2023, when he was found in a parked car in Windsor and arrested as part of a police probe into suspected fentanyl trafficking.
Superior Court Justice Bruce Thomas apologized to McCullagh’s family in April, when he sentenced Fageer to 7 1/2 years for manslaughter and three counts of breaching court orders.
“I apologize to you because I recall . . . telling you he was coming back and I would sentence him – and I couldn’t, for obvious reasons,” Thomas said at the hearing. “Part of that is on me, and I apologize to you that you’ve had to wait this long to get to this day.”
Ford was to appear in court Friday to set a sentencing date.
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