A Yorkton man has pled guilty to four robberies in the region.
Chris Chernoff pled guilty to four counts of robbery and three counts of wearing a face mask in the commission of a robbery. He also pled guilty to three counts of possession of fentanyl.
On November 16, 2017, Chernoff walked into the Loaf and Jug carrying a facemask and what the complainant described as a small, silver fruit knife, and demanded money from the clerk. The jacket he was wearing during the offense and the mask were found later. Chernoff took $200 in the first robbery.
The second robbery took place on November 22, 2017 at the Pharmasave in Yorkton. He walked into the pharmacy carrying a bag and a mask and demanded prescription drugs. He later told someone that he had robbed the businesses and gave them drugs matching the description of the drugs stolen in the robbery. A total of $975 worth of drugs were taken in this robbery.
The next robbery was at the Melville Pharmacy on November 28, 2017. Chernoff again demanded prescription drugs, stating “I’m going to rob this place, this is a robbery,” in the pharmacy. The drugs stolen were fentanyl patches, with a total retail value of $3,700.
The final robbery was on January 5 at Sametz Pharmacy in Ituna.
Claiming to have a knife and a gun, Chernoff took all of the fentanyl at the pharmacy as well as hydromorphone, before fleeing in a dark-colored Chevrolet Uplander minivan. Chernoff and the stolen drugs were later found in the vehicle. He gave a full confession, and admitted he was lying about the weapons during the Ituna robbery.
Prosecutor Andrew Wyatt stated that the aggravating factors in the case were the number of robberies, the escalating violence and the amount of fear caused by the robberies in the communities where they took place. Chernoff also denied involvement when initially confronted. Chernoff also has a prior criminal record, with a 2009 robbery in Lloydminister.
For the defense, Julie Knox argued that the string of robberies were caused by the defendant’s addictions issues, which began when he was nine but became worse after the defendant was prescribed narcotics after an infection. A string of family tragedies caused him to become lost in addictions issues, Knox explained. He was remorseful for his actions.
Judge Patrick Koskie followed the joint submission in the case. Chernoff was sentenced for three years in the Ituna robbery and one year each for the other three, to be served consecutively. He also received one year for each of the facemask charges, with the first to be served consecutively and the remaining to be served concurrently. He also received three months for the charges of fentanyl, which was to be served concurrently. He will also receive a ten year firearms prohibition and a mandatory weapons prohibition. Chernoff will serve a total of seven years for this string of robberies.
“Addictions issues lead you here,” said Koskie. “I wish you luck.”
