Yellowknife (Oct 11/04) - The man charged with first-degree murder in the death of Yellowknife parole officer Louise Pargeter pleaded guilty to manslaughter 12 years ago after the death of his girlfriend.

Eli Ulayuk, 36, spent eight years in prison after the 1988 slaying of Martha Ammaq in Iglulik.

He was convicted of second-degree murder after a 10-day trial in 1988, but a new trial was ordered on appeal in 1990, after the law covering grounds for an insanity defence changed.

Ulayuk then pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of manslaughter.

A death in the line of duty "has never happened with a community officer, ever," said Jan Fox, district director with the Correctional Service of Canada. A classification officer was once killed in a 1975 B.C. prison riot.

At a press conference in Yellowknife, Friday, Fox said that Ulayuk had been granted day parole in June 2000.

Pargeter, 34, was his parole officer for day parole, but when Ulayuk was granted full parole in June 2004, another officer took the case. Restructuring brought Pargeter back on the file in time to make her first, but fatal, visit to Ulayuk's apartment on Oct. 6.

Fox said Pargeter's visit was not a surprise. Rather, it was a "prearranged meeting" scheduled for 10 a.m. Fox told reporters that Ulayuk was driven home from work in order to meet Pargeter.

When she did not show up for a lunch date and did not return to work, Corrections officials notified police at 3:03 p.m., according to RCMP Insp. Greg Morrow.

Police are not commenting on any possible weapon or motive. A ruling on the cause of death awaits the coroner's report.

Morrow said there was a high-speed chase after police saw a Corrections Canada vehicle driving down Highway 3 around 6:30 p.m. Police closed off the highway a half-hour later.

Eyewitness Paul Beaton was driving to Edzo around 6:40 p.m. when he saw a dark-coloured Jeep Cherokee speeding toward him with four police vehicles in pursuit.

"He was sliding, but it didn't seem to be slowing him down," said Beaton, who estimated the Jeep's speed at around 180 km/h.

Rae RCMP set up a spike belt to stop the Jeep, but the driver ditched the car before he reached them. A foot pursuit through the bush followed while an RCMP negotiator spoke through car-mounted loudspeakers in an attempt to coax the suspect out.

Police arrested a man "without incident" at 1:10 a.m., said Morrow. The highway reopened at 2 a.m.

After a night of heavy drinking in Iglulik in 1988, and by his own admission motivated by visions of having sex with a dead person, Ulayuk stabbed Ammaq seven times and then strangled her "to put her out of her misery," according to court documents.

It was determined that he did not have sex with Ammaq after killing her, but Dr. Graeme Clancy, a psychiatrist called by the Crown, diagnosed Ulayuk as a necrophile: one who is aroused by the thought of sex with dead people.

Iglulik in shock

Rick Doucet, Iglulik senior administrative officer, told News/North that he has talked to some of Ulayuk's family members.

"The community is in shock, and it's especially hurtful for his family," said Doucet. "It's quite an unbelievable situation."

At Friday's press conference, Morrow said he could not comment on whether or not alcohol was a factor in the death of Pargeter.

"We're less than 48 hours into a very intensive investigation," Morrow said. An autopsy was ordered to determine the exact cause of Pargeter's death

Regional director Fox said that Pargeter's death will lead to "a very significant national joint investigation."

The investigation will be conducted by the chair of the National Parole Board, the commissioner of Correctional Services of Canada, and will include an independent citizen.

The investigation will be made to find out what, if anything, went wrong in the parole procedure and in the supervision of the offender.

Fox did not know when the committee would convene, but said "it will not be long into the future."

Parole officers in Canada do not carry weapons, Fox said. Officers are trained in "personal safety" and risk assessment. It is not uncommon for parole officers, male or female, to make visits alone, Fox said. Paroled offenders pass through a risk assessment screening, but Fox was not able to say what rating had been determined for Ulayuk.

Ulayuk had done well in the Salvation Army's residential facility and had found a job, Fox said. He also saw a psychiatrist and was thought of as having "high reintegration potential."

Fox said she was "confident those professionals were watching the risk."

There are 26 parolees and, until Oct. 6, two parole officers in the NWT.

Pargeter is survived by a life partner and their young child.