Photo: Chelsey Mutter

A Vernon man who deliberately doused a Mountie in gasoline and threatened to set him ablaze had his appeal dismissed by B.C.'s highest court.

Blake Dergez was found guilty last year of assault with a weapon and uttering threats. He was sentenced to 13 months in prison.

Dergez appealled both the conviction and sentence, arguing the trial judge “erred in his assessment of the evidence, gave insufficient reasons, and failed to impose a sentence that was consistent with the principles of totality and proportionality.”

His conviction and sentencing stem from a September 2021 incident where Degrez was contacted by police following reports of someone shining a laser pointer at passing airplanes at Kelowna International Airport.

A witness identified Dergez to police on scene as the person pointing the laser. Mounties attempted to arrest Dergez and a constable was covered in a significant amount of gasoline during the ensuing struggle.

On appeal, Dergez tried unsuccessfully to argue that the gasoline was spilled accidentally and that the trial judge relied on insufficient evidence.

“I am not persuaded by Mr. Dergez’s submissions," B.C. Court of Appeal Justice Gail Dickson wrote in the decision. "I see no error in the judge’s assessment of the evidence or his related findings of fact."