Lethbridge Courthouse

By Lara Fominoff

Second Sentence for Sheppard

Lethbridge man serving time for 2018 west side shooting receives second prison sentence

Sep 11, 2019 | 10:27 AM

LETHBRIDGE, AB – A 34-year-old Lethbridge man sentenced to six years in prison in relation to a shooting in west Lethbridge in 2018, has been sentenced for a second time – in less than a month – on an unrelated matter.

Robert John Sheppard was originally facing five charges, including sexual assault, sexual assault causing bodily harm, uttering threats, and two counts of possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose to the public peace or for the purpose of committing an offence – in relation to an incident in Coaldale in April 2016.

On Tuesday, Sept. 9, he pleaded guilty to one count of sexual assault and received a 32-month prison sentence in Court of Queen’s Bench. The remaining charges were withdrawn.

According to Crown Prosecutor Clayton Giles, the sentence is consecutive to any other sentence he is currently serving.

A publication ban remains in the effect on the identity of the complainant in the 2016 case.

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Sheppard will have to submit a sample of his DNA to the National Sex Offender Registry and will remain on that registry for the next 20 years. He is also subject to a 10-year firearms prohibition.

West Lethbridge Shooting

In August, Sheppard was convicted of eight offences, including discharging a firearm at a person with the intent to wound, maim or disfigure, carrying a concealed weapon, pointing a firearm and five other firearms related offences.

They relate to an incident at a home on Heritage Boulevard West on April18, 2018.

At time, Sheppard was in a relationship with Erika Grintals and was upset that she was ignoring his phone calls and texts. So, he went to her home with a gun.

When no one answered the door, he went into the back yard where Grintals was relaxing around a fire pit. An argument or disagreement ensued, and Sheppard referred to a rifle and thousands of rounds of ammunition.

She then went into her home and told her son, his girlfriend and another friend to turn off all the lights and music and to call 9-1-1. Sheppard then came back with a Russian Simonov semi-automatic gun.

Grintals once again went outside and was a short time later shoved to the ground. After getting up, she ran back into the house as several shots rang out in succession. She, her son and his girlfriend ran terrified along the street and took shelter in a neighbor’s back yard, while the family friend hid inside the house.

With time served, Sheppard’s had about four years left to serve, not including Tuesday’s prison sentence.