A photo of Tyler Vandewater being led away from Prince Albert Court of Queen's Bench in January 2020. (File photo/paNOW Staff)

By Nigel Maxwell

Court proceedings

Former Sask. Pen inmate, serving life sentence for murder of cellmate, returns to court.

Dec 9, 2021 | 8:00 AM

A man who murdered his former cellmate at Saskatchewan Penitentiary showed no visible signs of emotion or remorse when he appeared by video Wednesday at Prince Albert Provincial Court for another charge related to violence.

Tyler Vandewater, 33, received a 20-month sentence after entering a guilty plea to assault causing bodily harm.

The incident took place last April at Alberta’s Bowden Institution. According to the statement of facts read in court, Vandewater had a verbal altercation with another inmate near the phone in the common room area of the prison.

The words escalated to violence when Vandewater attacked the victim from behind, stabbing him multiple times in the back with a handmade shank. A third inmate was also involved in helping Vandewater in the assault.

The victim was able to run away. When correctional officers arrived to break up the disturbance, Vandewater was still holding the sharp edged weapon.

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Vandewater was transferred to the Edmonton area prison shortly after receiving a life sentence last year for the murder of Chris Van Camp at Saskatchewan Penitentiary.

During the trial, the court heard Vandewater stabbed Van Camp over 60 times, and then sat in the cell with the lifeless body for a number of hours, before correctional officers conducted morning checks.

Vandewater testified he acted in self-defence and described Van Camp as paranoid and agitated, expressing fears others were “plotting against him.”

The justice overseeing the case, however, said there was no evidence to support that, and also referred to the assault on Van Camp as “gratuitous” and “unrestrained.”

Vandewater’s most recent conviction will run concurrent to the life sentence he is serving.

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nigel.maxwell@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @nigelmaxwell