Tripping an 86-year-old Penticton man, breaking his leg over a parking spot at Walmart, was just this man’s latest angry incident

An 86-year-old Penticton man was always one of the first at Walmart every morning, turning up at 7 a.m. daily to get groceries, so all the staff knew him well.

But on Dec. 5, 2023, a chance encounter with a very angry 55-year-old man changed things.

For reasons not fully explained, Michael Otway took issue with the senior’s parking. 

Standing in the Walmart lobby, Otway claimed the octogenarian had taken up two spaces with his vehicle and demanded he move his car.

He threatened to slash the elderly man’s tires or move the vehicle himself. 

Trying to cool the situation down, the 86-year-old headed to his vehicle and moved it.

Unimpressed by Otway’s behaviour, staff at the store spoke to him and asked him to leave.

Upset and angry, Otway began to exit the store, but as he was walking out he deliberately put out his leg and tripped the elderly man who was walking back in.

The 86-year-old fell to the ground. The fall caused him to break his femur, and he ended up in a cast for eight weeks.

Otway made a quick exit, but the entire event was captured by the store’s CCTV camera.

Police put out a media release asking the public to identify him, and he later turned himself in to police. He was charged with assault causing bodily harm. 

In a Penticton courtroom July 22, Judge Shannon Keyes said the elderly man was distressed from being attacked by a complete stranger and he was unable to understand why someone would do such a thing.

“He suffered significant depression and upset, because he was housebound for months, and he was in a lot of pain and discomfort,” the judge said.

The 86-year-old had to go and live with his daughter so she could look after him.

“Most of all, (he) was terribly distressed for being attacked by a complete stranger for no reason at all,” the judge said.

After Otway was charged, the case dragged through the courts, with the matter being set for trial on two occasions, before Otway finally pleaded guilty.

The court heard how Otway had two sons in their late twenties and had worked in the oil patch on and off over the years. In 2016, he stopped working due to severe depression and mental health issues.

He now lives alone in a trailer on his mom’s property and rarely goes out.

A psychiatrist implied that treating him was complicated by symptoms of a narcissistic personality disorder and cannabis use disorder.

The court heard that Otway did not have a criminal record, but there had been recent incidents.

“What is significant is increasing interpersonal difficulties,” the judge said.

There was an incident on a golf course and no longer golfs. 

He’d also been banned from a pharmacy for being angry and threatening to staff.

A psychiatrist report stated Otway had issues with anger and agitation over the years. He said he had no memory of the offence.

“He was experimenting by going out and confronting people involved in the drug trade, almost as if he was some sort of self-professed vigilante,” the judge said.

Otway asked his psychiatrist for a letter to give to the court saying this was out of character for him. His psychiatrist refused.

Highlighting that Otway got to age 55 without getting a criminal record, defence lawyer Keesha Chase argued that the offence was an isolated incident and Otway should receive a conditional discharge, meaning he wouldn’t get a criminal record if he passed probation.

However, Judge Keyes said that wasn’t appropriate.

“(He) has an increasing history of anger and confrontation with strangers in public,” the judge said. “Mr. Otway set himself up as parking lot police at Walmart (and) decided to deal with his anger about being ejected from Walmart by attacking an 86-year-old man.”

The judge said she was concerned about Otway’s risk to the community.

“Because those personality characteristics are not things that just go away. They have to be solidly addressed,” she said.

Otway apologized to the court for his behaviour, saying he was doing much better now.

Ultimately, Judge Shannon Keyes sentenced Otway to a 9 p.m. to 7 a.m. curfew for four months, barred him from any drugs or alcohol, and ordered that he receive mandatory counselling.