Shannon (Shay) Clegg outside provincial court in Nanaimo after day one of his sentencing hearing for brutally stabbing a woman in Bowser. (Ian Holmes/NanaimoNewsNOW)

By Ian Holmes

Disturbing crime

‘It’s chilling:’ shocking account of Bowser man attacking woman with knife revealed

Jun 7, 2019 | 10:07 AM

Editors note — This story contains graphic details which may not be appropriate for all readers.

NANAIMO — It remains unclear why a man stabbed a woman a dozen times in a shocking and unprovoked attack caught on surveillance video in Bowser.

A sentencing hearing for Shannen (Shay) Lee Clegg, 24, began Thursday at provincial court in Nanaimo, more than a year after he pleaded guilty to aggravated assault.

Crown prosecutor Nick Barber said Clegg showed up at the victim’s home on the early morning hours of Nov. 14, 2017 while extremely intoxicated. Court was told the victim, who was an acquaintance, rejected his advances.

After a brief discussion, it was agreed she would drive Clegg home since she wasn’t impaired.

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As the pair neared his home outside Tomm’s Food Village in Bowser, a suddenly enraged Clegg attacked her with a three-to-four inch folding knife.

The woman managed to get out of the vehicle with minor injuries.

Clegg then put on a Batman mask and chased her to the grocery store’s parking lot. He caught up to her while she was on the ground tucked into a ball to protect herself.

The most serious portion of the attack was captured by surveillance cameras at Tomm’s Food Village.

The graphic video of Clegg over top of the victim in the parking lot was shown in court.

“You’ll see she’s able to get away and is running toward the market for assistance and you can see her there waving her arms and he’s chasing after her,” Barber pointed out to Judge Justine Saunders.

A second camera positioned inside Tomm’s Food Village picks up the attack from there.

“Keep your eyes on this door, you’re going to see (the victim) appear banging on the door, trying to get help.”

No one was inside the closed store to help the frantic victim. A nearby resident heard her screams and called police.

The victim suffered numerous deep stab wounds to her chest and upper back. The knife penetrated close to her spine and punctured her lung. Her face was lacerated. Her ribs were broken.

She required surgeries to the chest and lung.

For unexplained reasons, Clegg stopped the attack and walked to the home he shared with his girlfriend.

He told her and then a 911 dispatcher what happened outside the store. Clegg was arrested without incident by Oceanside RCMP shortly after.

“It’s chilling your honour,” Barber said. “It’s unusual to have those kinds of assaults captured on video.”

Despite Clegg’s guilty plea, there’s still no definitive motive for the disturbing crime.

“We could take a guess that she rebuffed his advances, but even that is not clear,” Barber said. “It wasn’t as though he had been pursuing her over any course of time.”

A silent Clegg, dressed in a black button-up shirt and blue jeans, appeared to be disturbed as he watched both video clips.

His mother, sitting alongside other supporters in the court room, was periodically in tears.

The victim impact statement was read out to the court by Barber.

The woman reported a near-photographic recollection of the entire attack, including the sound of the knife and image of Clegg.

She is now unable to watch Batman movies and is uncomfortable around people wearing masks and costumes.

Barber said the woman still suffers nerve and psychological damage but moved on with her life.

She didn’t appear in court for the proceedings.

Shannon Clegg avoids having his picture taking, while his mother warned NanaimoNewsNOW not to publish pictures of her son. (Ian Holmes/NanaimoNewsNOW)

Defence attorney Chris Churchill said Clegg doesn’t have a clear recollection of what happened.

He was on medical leave at the time and taking anti-depressants to deal with stress and anxiety.

Churchill said Clegg had a severe alcohol problem. He said Clegg polished off most of a 26-ounce bottle of whiskey before the incident.

A psychologist ruled Clegg wasn’t clinically depressed, but alcohol was deemed to be a factor in his behaviour.

Clegg, a Kwalikum Secondary School grad, believed using his medication played a role.

Churchill said Clegg gained greater insight into his actions while opening up to a clinical counsellor on the Lower Mainland.

During those sessions, Clegg said he had a difficult upbringing caused by his father abandoning him and his alcoholic mother living in poverty.

“None of these are excuses, just the reasons that I have so much anger in me,” Clegg told his counsellor, which was presented to court as part of a pre-sentence report.

“I was never a violent person, but I learned through counselling that these things can build up inside a person and explode. I believe that’s what happened to me that night I was drinking,” Clegg said.

Churchill said Clegg previously only took his aggression out on objects when he was drunk.

Clegg spent six-and-half months in jail after the stabbing.

He was transferred to a pair of therapeutic, institutionalized settings where he remains after pleading guilty in May of last year.

Clegg had no prior criminal record or history with police.

Court heard his punishment carries a range between 16 months and six years in jail.

The Crown requested at least two years less a day of new jail time and a maximum of five years behind bars.

The defence asked for an additional jail term of two years less a day.

Clegg’s sentencing hearing will resume at a later date.

ian@nanaimonewsnow.com
On Twitter: @reporterholmes