A nine-year prison sentence for a violent, drug-induced assault in the parking lot of Castlegar’s West Kootenay Regional Airport .
Aaron Welch was sentenced Monday in Nelson Provincial Court after pleading guilty to 14 charges.
One morning in February while high on crystal meth he damaged a number of parked cars trying to steal one.
Then he stabbed a 63-year-old man in the face with a pair of wire snips and took his truck.
Another driver rammed the vehicle to stop it at which point it rolled into an arriving police car.
In sentencing the 28-year-old, the judge cited Welch’s long criminal history.
He had 32 other offences on his record over an 11-year period including many assault convictions.
The crown was seeking ten years in prison while the defence wanted four to six.
He gets nine months credit for time served.