BATTLEFORD – A 28-year-old man charged with first-degree murder in connection with 54-year-old Bradley Ham’s death wants a trial by judge alone.
The non-jury trial for Jonathan Swiftwolfe of Moosomin First Nation is scheduled for February 2024 in Battleford Court of King’s Bench.
Following a seven-month investigation into Ham's murder, RCMP arrested Swiftwolfe at the Saskatchewan Penitentiary in July 2021 and charged him with first-degree murder. Swiftwolfe had just started serving a four-year sentence for evading and fleeing from police, assault, uttering threats, dangerous driving and weapons-related offences.
Cassandra Fox, then 24, from Sweetgrass First Nation, was also charged in July 2021 with first-degree murder in Ham’s death. She was arrested at the Pine Grove Correctional Centre.
In November 2022, Fox pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of accessory after the fact to murder with Crown Prosecutor Jennifer Schmidt and defence Brian Pfefferle entering a joint submission to North Battleford Provincial Court.
Two months later, Fox died while in custody at Okimaw Ohci Healing Lodge in Maple Creek.
Turtleford RCMP say Ham’s body was found near a grid road about 30 kilometres southeast of Glaslyn on Nov. 27, 2020.
In November 2021, Swiftwolfe was moved to an Alberta prison at the request of the warden at Saskatchewan Penitentiary.
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