Two Calgary men are facing charges of aggravated assault and numerous other offences after two people were stabbed following an altercation in an Olds bar that spilled out onto the streets early Friday morning.
Olds RCMP were called to 49 Avenue near Niemeyer's Welding and Machine Shop shortly after 2:50 a.m. April 15 where they interrupted an altercation in progress.
A 24-year-old Olds man was flown by STARS to Foothills Medical Centre after sustaining stab wounds to his abdomen during the altercation on the street with three suspects - two of whom have been charged. He was listed in stable condition.
A 17-year-old Carstairs teen, one of three other people who were with the victim, was stabbed in the hand while trying to separate the combatants.
He was treated and released from Olds hospital.
Police say the altercation was related to an incident earlier in the night at the Texas Mickey bar.
“There was an altercation inside the bar earlier … involving one of the suspects and he was eventually removed by the bar staff,” said Cpl. Troy Byrt.
Police allege that one of the Calgary men charged in the altercation punched a woman in the face at the Texas Mickey.
The woman who was allegedly assaulted then left the bar with two friends. The group picked up a fourth person in a separate vehicle, which then was flagged down by the suspects later by Niemeyer's.
Once the victims stopped their vehicle, a 24-year-old Olds male got out of the vehicle and made comments to the suspects that it was “not cool to hit a girl” and was attacked by all three suspects, suffering stab wounds to his stomach.
The 17-year-old Carstairs driver of the victims' vehicle also got out the vehicle after the first man was stabbed and managed to separate one of the suspects from the first victim.
After police arrived on scene, the suspects fled. Two were subsequently apprehended after a short chase into the adjacent residential neighbourhood east of Niemeyer's.
Upon searching the suspects, police allegedly found a quantity of cocaine and ecstasy pills as well as undisclosed substances on the suspects.
RCMP are still investigating when the first incident happened and whether all three were removed from the Texas Mickey or whether it was only one individual that was removed and the other two suspects left on their own at the same time.
Police are still searching for a third suspect. They are also still investigating the motive that led to the incident.
Benjamin Chapple, 20, of Calgary and Keaton Persson, 20, also of Calgary, appeared in Didsbury court yesterday to answer to charges related to the altercation.
Chapple is charged with two counts of aggravated assault, two counts of assault with a weapon, two counts of uttering threats, one count of possession of a controlled substance for the purpose of trafficking, one count of possession of a controlled substance and one count of mischief under $5,000.
Persson is charged with two counts of aggravated assault, two counts of uttering threats, one count of mischief under $5,000 and one count of possession of a controlled substance.
