By Sheldon Spackman

October 2023

Preliminary hearing scheduled for pair charged in alleged Ponoka shooting

Mar 21, 2023 | 12:53 PM

A preliminary hearing is scheduled this fall for two men charged in an alleged shooting incident in Ponoka last year.

Eldon James Junior Saddleback, 34, of Maskwacis, and Anthony Kelsey Lee Omeasoo, 30, of Wetaskiwin, are scheduled for a preliminary hearing in Ponoka provincial court from Oct. 16-17, 2023, to determine if their case has enough evidence to go to trial.

It was on Sept. 21, 2022, when RCMP told media they had responded to a report of a shooting near the Leland Hotel just before 3 a.m.

Mounties say a victim with multiple gunshot wounds was taken to hospital by STARS in stable condition, and a collision had occurred near the hotel.

Later, RCMP said that on Sept. 26, 2022, with assistance from Calgary Police Service and other detachments, two individuals were arrested at the Cascade Ponds in Banff National Park.

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Additionally, a search warrant was executed on a property in Calgary which resulted in firearms being seized.

As a result, RCMP charged Eldon James Junior Saddleback and Anthony Kelsey Lee Omeasoo with:

• Attempted Murder with a Firearm
• Aggravated Assault
• Assault with a Weapon x 2
• Discharge Firearm with Intent
• Possession of a Weapon for Dangerous Purpose
• Fail to Comply with Release Order.
• An additional charge for Saddleback of Possession of Weapon Contrary to an Order.

“This was a complex investigation and arrest which required effective coordination of units within and outside of the RCMP,” said Sergeant Brandon Humbke of the Central Alberta GIS unit, days after the arrests. “Officers from RCMP Detachments in Ponoka, Maskwacis, Wetaskiwin, Blackfalds, Airdrie, Banff, and Canmore. RCMP Support units from Southern Alberta GIS and Crime Reduction Units, Central Alberta Crime Reduction Unit, K Division Special I, and CIP Programs and working in conjunction with officers from the Calgary Police Service all worked in tandem to bring this investigation to its successful conclusion.”

Related: Two arrested in connection to alleged Ponoka shooting