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By Bob Mackin, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Violent home invader sentenced to 10-plus years in prison

May 3, 2025 | 4:15 PM

PRINCE GEORGE — A BC Supreme Court judge in Vernon sentenced a man from Prince George on April 14 to 10 years and four months in prison for a 2019 home invasion in Lumby.

Last June, Justice John Gibb-Carsley found Edward Scott Coghill guilty of eight charges and Stewart Wayne Tkachuk guilty of nine for the “premedidated and violent” crime.

Coghill was charged with break and enter with intent to commit robbery, discharging a firearm with intent to wound, masking with intent to commit an offence, unlawful confinement, aggravated assault and possession of a firearm without a licence. Tkachuk had an additional charge, for possessing a firearm while banned.

“Mr. Coghill and Mr. Tkachuk committed a prolonged and senseless attack against two victims who were in bed in their own home — the place they should feel most safe,” Gibb-Carsley said in his sentencing reasons. “The victims were bound, beaten and shot. The attack left one victim with life-altering injuries. In the circumstances of this case, a fair and appropriate sentence must emphasize the goals of deterrence and denunciation.”

Gibb-Carsley said the victims’ lives will never be the same after the “horrifying” attack that lasted over 45 minutes. The male victim described in a statement to the court that the lingering nerve damage and blood clots prevent him from working. He also suffered psychological damage and the trauma ruined his relationship with the other victim.

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Gibb-Carsley said Coghill, 50, was born in Williams Lake, the youngest in a family of 16. He moved to Prince George at age 14, has a Grade 9 education and worked at a Dairy Queen and a butcher shop. He met his wife in Prince George and they moved to Vanderhoof where they had three children. They separated and he remained in Vanderhoof to raise their children.

Gibb-Carsley officially sentenced Coghill to 11 years in jail, but reduced the sentence by 240 days for time already spent in custody. Vernon-resident Tkachuk, 53, got 12 years less 450 days of in-custody credit.

The Crown had proposed a 16-to-18-year jail sentence for Coghill and 17-to-19 years for Tkachuk. Defence lawyers asked for eight years for Coghill and 10-to-11 years for Tkachuk.

Gibb-Carsley said Tkachuk was “somewhat less involved” in the crime. He rebuked Coghill’s behaviour “in the strongest of terms,” but did commend him for working to overcome opioid addiction and live a productive life.

“Mr. Coghill will need to make to remain drug free and thus crime free,” Gibb-Carsley said.