Andrew Raven
Northern News Services

Yellowknife (Mar 26/04) - A Yellowknife man entered rare territory Wednesday, racking up his 87th criminal conviction stemming from a break and enter last December.

Peter Martin, 41, pleaded guilty to two counts of possession of stolen property and one count each of mischief and breach of probation, adding to his already nasty total of 83 convictions.

"You've made a business of being a career criminal. It's time to declare bankruptcy," territorial court Judge Brian Bruser told Martin.

Bruser sentenced Martin to a total of 12 months in jail and expressed little hope that the 41-year-old could be rehabilitated.

"Wherever he goes, the public will be at risk. There's no doubt about that," he said.

Martin was originally scheduled to appear in territorial court Wednesday to answer to six charges related to a Dec. 19 break and enter.

The 41-year-old broke into the home of a former employer and stole a jacket and a computer.

Martin, who has lived in Yellowknife since 1992, has 54 property offenses, which demonstrates a lack of "impulse control," said Crown prosecutor Noel Sinclair.

"He is a serious recidivist (repeat offender)," he said. "He's a threat to any community that is harbouring him."

Martin's lawyer, Margot Engley, said her client has been battling alcoholism for most of his life and his addiction is the prime reason for his lengthy criminal record.

Engley said that Martin was hoping to enter a drug and alcohol rehabilitation centre and continue his eduction in hopes of getting his life back in order.

During a brief address to the court, Martin said he was hoping to move to Calgary once his jail stint is complete.

"Up here there's too much alcohol," he said.