And then he looked on with glee as the flames rose higher and higher . . .
That’s how the Crown described the look on Nicodemo Catenacci’s face in one of several photographs presented Monday in a provincial court.
Catenacci, a 41-year old Windsor carpenter, has pleaded guilty to arson in the burning of a Toronto Police cruiser during the G20 summit. In photos shown at Monday’s sentencing hearing, he is seen setting a newspaper ablaze and tossing it into the smashed cruiser.
He’s later seen smiling as the car bursts into flames.
“Catenacci was not part of any protest group or the Black Bloc, but his actions were brazen and deliberate.” Crown Attorney Elizabeth Nadeau told Justice Fern Weinper, who will sentence Catenacci later this month.
In arguing for a jail sentence, Nadeau described Catenacci as a man with an “obvious contempt for the law,” drawing the court’s attention to 17 past convictions.
Catenacci, who lives with his parents, was arrested Aug. 10. He spent nine days in custody before being released to his parents on bail.
Catenacci’s lawyer, Erin Dann, said her client was depressed and on cocaine when he lit cruiser 766 on fire.
Swept up in the moment, he “made an incredible error of judgment,” Dann said.
Police identified Catenacci through photographs provided by members of the public.
Testifying on the impact of Catenacci’s actions, Staff Insp. Randy Franks told how cruiser 766 came to be abandoned on Queen St. W. on the evening of June 26.
Franks said two cruisers — 766 and 3251 — were left on Queen St. near Spadina Ave. after they were set upon by a violent mob. The officers inside had to be “extracted” from the scene.
Left to the masses, the cars were soon vandalized. Cruiser 3251, parked on the south side of Queen St., outside Steve’s Music Store, was the first to burn. By 7:50 p.m., it was nothing more than a charred shell.
That’s when Catenacci lit the fire that eventually engulfed cruiser 766.
In photos and video presented in court, the car’s windows have already been shattered by vandals as Catenacci approaches, lights a newspaper and places it on the front seat.
Thousands of people later gather, staring at the cruiser as it crackles and pops beneath the flames. At one point something inside the car explodes, sparks fly into the street and the awed crowd jumps.
In another part of the video, Catenacci is seen standing near the car with, the Crown alleges, “glee on his face” at the sight of the burning vehicle.
The $33,700 cruiser was still alight when riot police finally retook the street.
Nadeau has asked that Catenacci be sentenced for up to two years for his part in the incident.
Catenacci has been on probation for the last five years, including when he did this, Nadeau told the court.
“It’s clear he has no interest in abiding by the rules.
“He turned the streets of Toronto into what resembled a war zone . . . because (he thought) it might be fun to light a car on fire.”
The defence asked Weinper to consider that Catenacci did not act alone, noting that people in the crowd had set the previous car ablaze. Cruiser 766 “would have burned either way,” Dann said.
A second man, who was captured on video throwing flammable objects into cruiser 766 as the fire burned, has yet to be tried.
Catenacci is to appear in court March 16 for sentencing. He is the first person to be convicted in the torching of police cruisers during the G20 protests that tore through the downtown core.
Source: http://www.thestar.com
That’s how the Crown described the look on Nicodemo Catenacci’s face in one of several photographs presented Monday in a provincial court.
Catenacci, a 41-year old Windsor carpenter, has pleaded guilty to arson in the burning of a Toronto Police cruiser during the G20 summit. In photos shown at Monday’s sentencing hearing, he is seen setting a newspaper ablaze and tossing it into the smashed cruiser.
He’s later seen smiling as the car bursts into flames.
“Catenacci was not part of any protest group or the Black Bloc, but his actions were brazen and deliberate.” Crown Attorney Elizabeth Nadeau told Justice Fern Weinper, who will sentence Catenacci later this month.
In arguing for a jail sentence, Nadeau described Catenacci as a man with an “obvious contempt for the law,” drawing the court’s attention to 17 past convictions.
Catenacci, who lives with his parents, was arrested Aug. 10. He spent nine days in custody before being released to his parents on bail.
Catenacci’s lawyer, Erin Dann, said her client was depressed and on cocaine when he lit cruiser 766 on fire.
Swept up in the moment, he “made an incredible error of judgment,” Dann said.
Police identified Catenacci through photographs provided by members of the public.
Testifying on the impact of Catenacci’s actions, Staff Insp. Randy Franks told how cruiser 766 came to be abandoned on Queen St. W. on the evening of June 26.
Franks said two cruisers — 766 and 3251 — were left on Queen St. near Spadina Ave. after they were set upon by a violent mob. The officers inside had to be “extracted” from the scene.
Left to the masses, the cars were soon vandalized. Cruiser 3251, parked on the south side of Queen St., outside Steve’s Music Store, was the first to burn. By 7:50 p.m., it was nothing more than a charred shell.
That’s when Catenacci lit the fire that eventually engulfed cruiser 766.
In photos and video presented in court, the car’s windows have already been shattered by vandals as Catenacci approaches, lights a newspaper and places it on the front seat.
Thousands of people later gather, staring at the cruiser as it crackles and pops beneath the flames. At one point something inside the car explodes, sparks fly into the street and the awed crowd jumps.
In another part of the video, Catenacci is seen standing near the car with, the Crown alleges, “glee on his face” at the sight of the burning vehicle.
The $33,700 cruiser was still alight when riot police finally retook the street.
Nadeau has asked that Catenacci be sentenced for up to two years for his part in the incident.
Catenacci has been on probation for the last five years, including when he did this, Nadeau told the court.
“It’s clear he has no interest in abiding by the rules.
“He turned the streets of Toronto into what resembled a war zone . . . because (he thought) it might be fun to light a car on fire.”
The defence asked Weinper to consider that Catenacci did not act alone, noting that people in the crowd had set the previous car ablaze. Cruiser 766 “would have burned either way,” Dann said.
A second man, who was captured on video throwing flammable objects into cruiser 766 as the fire burned, has yet to be tried.
Catenacci is to appear in court March 16 for sentencing. He is the first person to be convicted in the torching of police cruisers during the G20 protests that tore through the downtown core.
Source: http://www.thestar.com
No comments:
Post a Comment