A man charged with murder for the death of Bradley John Ham appeared in North Battleford Provincial Court today.
Jonathan Swiftwolfe, 27, appeared by CCTV from Saskatchewan Penitentiary. Due to COVID-19, he was wearing a large face shield, a full-length hospital-type gown and blue disposable gloves. He sat in a chair slumped over during his appearance.
Legal aid lawyer Cara Hill told the court she hasn’t been able to reach Swiftwolfe by phone inside the Saskatchewan Penitentiary. She asked for an adjournment to give her time to talk to him. Crown Prosecutor Oryn Holm agreed to the adjournment until Aug. 5 saying the Crown has minimal disclosure.
Swiftwolfe was arrested July 7 at the Saskatchewan Penitentiary where he is currently serving four years on weapons charges, uttering threats, assault, evading/fleeing from police, and dangerous driving.
Cassandra Fox, 24, is also charged with first-degree murder in Ham’s death. She was arrested at Pine Grove Correctional Centre July 5. She had a show cause hearing scheduled in North Battleford Provincial Court July 9 on charges in another incident but the hearing didn’t proceed. Her next court appearance is Aug. 5.
Fifty-four-year-old Ham’s body was found near a grid road about 30 kilometres southeast of Glaslyn on Nov. 27, 2020. Police say Ham lives in North Battleford, Saskatoon and Prince Albert.
In December 2020 Swiftwolfe and Fox were arrested together after a police pursuit that reached speeds of up to 190 km/hour. At the time, Swiftwolfe was wanted on outstanding warrants and due to his violent nature police say they continued the pursuit. They were searching for him at the time and had issued a public safety warning about Swiftwolfe. When police described him they said he has the word “Westside” tattooed on the right side of his face and neck. Westside Outlaws is a street gang.
The RCMP Crime Reduction Team that specializes in gang activity helped arrest Swiftwolfe east of Sweetgrass First Nation. He had a loaded firearm directly behind his seat, within his reach. Fox was with Swiftwolfe at the time and she was wanted on 30 outstanding warrants including assault with a weapon and failure to comply with a release order.
