Armed robber’s parole revoked over Mic Mac Mall gun incident

An armed robber sent back to prison for his involvement in a pre-dawn gun deal in the Mic Mac Mall parking lot two summers back has seen his day parole revoked after he was convicted of driving a car that morning carrying an armed passenger.

A judge convicted Abdikarim Abdi of the offence earlier this month. He’s slated to be sentenced Dec. 11 in Dartmouth provincial court.

“This conviction relates to the circumstances of your current suspension, when police video footage confirmed you were the driver of a vehicle in which another occupant was armed with a firearm,” the parole board said in a decision dated Aug. 21.

Abdi, 29, was acquitted of several other charges including possessing a prohibited or restricted firearm with ammunition, two counts of possessing firearm while prohibited, careless use of a firearm, possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose, and carrying a concealed weapon.

‘Zip tied the victim’

He’s serving a nine-year sentence for a string of armed robberies in the Toronto area.

“These offences took place over six different dates between 2012 and 2013 and in 2017,” said the parole board, noting Abdi was armed with fake guns and associating with a street gang at the time.

“During some of these robberies, you tried to conceal your identity. In one of the instances, you pushed the victim into their office at the rear of the store and pointed a firearm towards them. You zip tied the victim and ordered them to tell you how to open the cash register.”

While Abdi was on bail before he was sentenced for the armed robberies, he was caught with guns.

“At sentencing, the judge issued a DNA order and a ten-year weapons prohibition order,” said the parole board.

Paroled to Nova Scotia 

In August 2020, Abdi was granted parole to a Nova Scotia halfway house. Then the next month, he was released on day parole to the community while he slept at the halfway house, and in March 2021 Abdi got leave privileges.

But in August 2021, Halifax police sent his parole officer surveillance video showing Abdi and others handling handguns in the Mic Mac Mall parking lot.

“One of the individuals you were with was charged with firearms and drug-related offences. The other individual was on conditional release,” said the parole board.

“You were identified as the driver of the vehicle. The video footage showed one of the individuals in the possession of what looked like a firearm and showed you in possession of what looked to be a firearm. You were subsequently arrested and charged with firearm offences.”

Risk ‘deemed unmanageable’

Abdi hadn’t told his case management team he was associating with known criminals while he was on a conditional release, said the parole board.

“You had not disclosed to your (case management team) that you had rented the (BMW) seen in the video for a period of one month. A warrant was issued on August 31, 2021, your risk was deemed unmanageable.”

Abdi’s parole was suspended and he was sent back to prison to continue serving his armed robbery sentence.

“You stated that you were out in the community when you weren’t supposed to be,” said the parole board.

“You also stated that you were shooting a music video with another individual on conditional release. You indicated that it went later than you expected.”

Abdi described the events that led to him being spotted with a gun in the Mic Mac Mall parking lot just after 4 a.m. on July 31, 2021.

“Your personal car had been totalled by a co-worker in the company parking lot, and they paid to get you a rental car, which you were driving to/from the (halfway house) each day.”

Shooting music video

One of his co-workers asked to borrow the car to shoot a music video, he told the parole board. It was for a song by convicted Halifax killer Carvel Antonio Clayton, who is also an aspiring musician.

“You agreed and let him have the vehicle. At about 3 a.m. while at your apartment on a weekend pass, he called you and reported that everyone was drunk so you should come and get your vehicle,” Abdi told the parole board.

“You knew that you would breach your curfew, but you chose to go and get your car. You knew only your co-worker among the people who were at the video shoot, but you agreed to drive home one of the males you had just met. While driving him home and chatting, he discovered you were on parole, and he asked you to drop him off at his parked vehicle at a mall. ‘That’s when the gun comes out,’ you said. You had intended to leave, but the other person had your cell phone, so you followed him to his apartment. You then decided to wait until the morning to go back to your own apartment. You drove your car by yourself to buy some cigarettes, and upon returning to the apartment building where the other person lived, you noticed multiple police cars there.”

Parole officer not informed

Abdi didn’t interact with police officers, nor did he think he was in any trouble, he told the parole board.

“So, you left the scene and chose not to report the incident to your (parole officer). You deny having committed any criminal offence, stating that you were not aware the other person had a firearm in his possession until he exited your vehicle.”

Since his parole was suspended almost two years ago, Abdi has been going to school in prison. “You also have maintained employment as a unit cleaner over that same two-year period.”

But his jailers believe Abdi’s been involved in the drug trade behind bars.

“(Correctional Service Canada) reports that there are security concerns with your behaviours since returning to custody,” said the parole board.

“Between August 2022 and June 2023, security intelligence officers have collected various reports from various sources that suggest you have been involved in sub-culture activities, including involvement in the drug trade. Although some of the source information is of unknown reliability, several of the reports are from sources believed reliable. Your (case management team) believes this suggests you have returned to your criminal offence cycle.”

Denies dealing drugs in prison

Abdi “stated that information is false,” said the parole board.

“Since returning to jail, you have always believed that you have a decent chance of having your day parole reinstated if you had good institutional behaviour while fighting your criminal charges through the court system. It wouldn’t make sense, you said, for you to get involved in subculture activities while trying to fight your charges to get back your day parole.”

The parole board reminded Abdi the intel about him dealing drugs behind bars came from multiple sources, “and that several of them were assessed as believed reliable. You maintained that you cannot control what others chose to say about you.”

If released again on day parole, Abdi isn’t sure if he’ll return to Nova Scotia, or move to a community closer to the federal prison where he’s currently living.

“Either way, you said, it will be necessary to start from scratch.”

A prison chaplain told the parole board that Abdi’s explanation about what happened in the Mic Mac Mall parking lot has been consistent since he returned to custody two years ago.

‘Faith-based activities’

“He also noted that you are involved with faith-based activities and that your positive character has been consistent.”

The parole board acknowledged Abdi’s “wisdom for pursuing a release to a geographic area that was far removed from (his) former, gang-focused lifestyle.”

Abdi reported he had cut ties with his old criminal associates.

“While in the community for close to one year on day parole, you appeared to be following your release conditions while demonstrating stability. It is therefore surprising that you were then identified in police video recordings in the company of a weapons-toting colleague, with whom you knowingly associated when you were supposed to be at your private apartment complying with a curfew condition during a weekend pass.”

The parole board “recognizes that, although charged with a myriad of weapons-related offences,” Abdi was “acquitted of all but one.”

Breached release conditions

It placed little weight on the charges Abdi was acquitted of, but the conviction for being in a car with a restricted firearm was a different story.

“Not only did you commit a criminal offence, but you breached several of your release conditions — i.e., associating with criminally active persons and not complying with your curfew.”

The parole board was also concerned that Abdi didn’t tell his parole officer about the incident, “as you clearly knew that you had breached several release conditions and had been in close contact with persons that were arrested by police for weapons and drug offences. To claim that you had no responsibility to report because you were not stopped by police yourself, nor did you have any direct interaction with them, is viewed by the board as convenient, self-serving rationalization.”

The parole board said it can’t ignore that Abdi has outwardly “demonstrated overt compliance” with his correctional plan since he was hauled back to prison two years ago.

‘Alarmed’ by reports from prison

“However, the board is alarmed by (security intelligence officer) reports of your alleged involvement in subculture activities.”

Several reports, “from various sources who gave information to different staff members at different times/dates and in different institutional settings, all paint the same general picture of you and are assessed as believed reliable.”

That means those sources must have a demonstrated history of accurate claims, said the parole board.

“It is therefore difficult for the board to take lightly the aggregate of security intelligence information, and it concludes that the (security intelligence officer) reports are likely more accurate than your own claims of innocence.”

Abdi “already had the benefit of a well-structured release setting, in the form of residing at a” halfway house, said the parole board.

“Returning you to that same environment with the same types of release conditions is unlikely to result in significant different results.”

The parole board was satisfied that Abdi presents an undue risk to society.

“As it finds that the risk you present is due to circumstances within your control, the board is revoking your day parole.”