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KIMMIRUT/LAKE HARBOUR
The man accused of firing a .303-calibre rifle at Kimmirut RCMP officers July 28 turned down an opportunity to request bail Aug. 2, choosing to remain in custody as his case proceeds.

Joe Utye, who will turn 21 on Aug. 20, appeared briefly before Justice of the Peace Nicole Sikma in Iqaluit. He faces six charges, including one count of intentionally discharging a firearm, one count of carrying a weapon for a purpose dangerous to the public peace, and four counts of uttering death threats. He will appear again by video Aug. 14, court heard.

The charges stem from an incident in the early hours of a Saturday morning, when a woman knocked on the door of one of two police officers stationed in the hamlet, telling the officer their lives were in danger. The second officer was awakened and the three went to the neighbouring detachment. After their arrival, an apparently intoxicated man opened fire on the detachment, causing considerable damage to the walls, windows, and a police truck.

A group of about 10 citizens came to the rescue, subduing the shooter, and as a result of their efforts, no one was hurt.

"This situation could have easily turned into another devastating tragedy," Chief Supt. Steve McVarnock stated in a media release. "While the efforts of the residents were critical and greatly appreciated, I am extremely concerned with this matter, including the increasing number of violent incidents targeting our police officers in this small community since 2006."

This shooting was the eighth such incident since that time, Supt. Hilton Smee said. To stop that number from growing, McVarnock, Smee and district Cmdr. Gerry Kerr were set to meet Friday morning with Mayor Qinnuayuaq Pudlat before meeting with the community at large in the afternoon.

"We're really going to be working with the community to generate solutions toward dealing with these types of incidents to work with them to develop some accountability about how they can work with us to keep our officers and the community safe," Smee said. "If the officers are not safe, the community is not safe."

The officers who were targeted - Const. Allan Jagoe and Cpl. Wendy Cornell - were working relief from a March shooting, and were set before this incident to complete their placement in the community Aug. 3, so replacements were already in the works before they were relieved. The community normally has two officers, but a total of four have been posted there until a risk assessment is conducted, he said. The first permanent member is set to arrive Aug. 10 and the second shortly after that, Smee said.

"They're still looking forward to coming up, they're still willing to do that," he said. "Obviously they have some questions that they wanted addressed and we've done that."

They will have to focus on connecting with the community to make solutions work, he said, but the community will have to be the driving force behind fixing the problem.

"When they come up with solutions, it has more impact and more weight and much more strength within the community as compared with the RCMP driving this and providing them with solutions," he said.

Although alcohol was a factor in the incident, Smee said the community's February plebiscite to move from a dry community to allowing restricted access has not changed the average number of calls for service.

"We have not seen a change either up or down since this community went to a restricted community," he said. "It's really steady. But when there is a large shipment of alcohol, there's a spike in calls for service."

A large shipment of alcohol had arrived only days before the shooting occurred, he said.

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