Vernon man Blake Dergez found guilty of assaulting a cop with gasoline, acquitted of bear spray assaults; laser pointing charges stayed in 2021 airport incident.

Blake Dergez, a man from Vernon, was found guilty of assaulting a police officer with gasoline and threatening to set him on fire, but was acquitted of five counts of assault using bear spray. The incident began in September 2021 when Dergez shined a laser at planes landing at Kelowna International Airport, including a WestJet flight, and subsequently confronted the pilot and flight instructor, spraying them with bear spray. The charges related to pointing the laser at the planes were stayed by the Public Prosecution Service of Canada.

February 17, 2024
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