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The man who started the fire that became last year’s Ditch 2 wildfire has been sentenced to six years in prison.
Jason Halkett pleaded guilty earlier this year to arson causing damage to property.
Judge Jeffrey Lubyk handed down the sentence Thursday in Montreal Lake provincial court.
“In my view this was a grave offence. This is a person who recognized the risks but persisted in the factors anyway,” Lubyk told court.
With credit for time already spent in custody, Halkett has four years and eight months left to serve.
Crown prosecutor Robyn Ermine had asked for 10 years and the defence had argued for a sentence between three and 3.5 years. The maximum under the Criminal Code is 14 years.
When asked to speak, Halkett told the court he’s sorry.
“I think it’s a good balance between what the defence and the Crown were asking. The Crown was asking for a 10-year sentence. The large community impact, as I had mentioned, the magnitude of the fire and the impacts individually that each community had,” Ermine said in an interview.
During sentencing arguments, defence lawyer Evan Strelioff referred to a report that pointed to Halkett’s personal circumstances, noting he has fetal alcohol spectrum disorder and “certainly comes from a disadvantaged background.”
Strelioff said Halkett had told him about times in his childhood when the heat and water would be cut off because his parents couldn’t pay the bills.
He said while Halkett admits starting the fire, there was no conclusive evidence that he was “reckless” — for example, the fire investigator could not rule out a discarded cigarette butt, Strelioff said.
The fire was first reported on May 26, 2025, amid “very high-risk” fire conditions during a dry spring.
It threatened communities along Highway 2 north of Prince Albert, including Molanosa, Ramsey Bay, Timber Bay and Weyakwin.
The Ditch 2 fire ultimately merged with the Shoe fire. Dozens of structures and vehicles were destroyed and damaged.
Victim impact statements filed in court spoke about fear and uncertainty felt by residents as they fled the fire, as well as the economic effects from things like the closures of businesses and loss of tourism.
Residents also lost access to traditional land-based resources, like food sources, medicine sources and hunting areas.
