JUSTICE-SEEKING SENIOR AWARDED $280,000

A Surrey man who tried delivering vigilante justice to drug addicts has
been awarded almost $280,000 by a B.C. Supreme Court judge.

Dmetro (Matt) Wepruk, 72, was injured one night in November 2000 when he
confronted a methamphetamine addict in the driveway of his home on 128th
Street.

Wepruk, a one-legged man who worked as a commercial fisherman and scrapyard
owner, was injured when the addict he'd confronted hit him with a car.

The plaintiff in the case, who had a leg amputated following a 1965 car
accident, had his remaining leg injured in the collision, along with his
lower back and shoulders.

On Wednesday, Justice Victoria Gray awarded Wepruk $279,132.08 in damages,
including $119,250 for past loss of capacity to earn income.

In her reasons for judgment, the Gray stated: "Mr. Wepruk continues to
experience pain in his knees, hips, back, shoulders and neck... Mr.
Wepruk's mobility has been significantly impaired since the incident...
While there is still the hope of some improvement, the incident occurred
four years ago and Mr. Wepruk continues to suffer."

The events that led up to Wepruk's confrontation with the addict began when
his scrapyard near his home was broken into several times. Wepruk suspected
the people breaking into the yard hung out at what he called a "drug house"
near his business.

The court heard that at 4 a.m. on Nov. 3, 2000, Wepruk went to check on his
scrapyard. He photographed a red 1987 Pontiac Firefly automobile parked at
the drug house. The driver of the car, Daniel Butt, and his girlfriend,
Jennifer McGarva, both methamphetamine addicts at the time, saw the
photographs being taken and became angry. They followed Wepruk to his house
and parked in his driveway.

Fearing for his safety, Wepruk grabbed a wooden post from his van and
smashed the windshield and back window of the Pontiac Firefly. The Firefly
was put into gear and drove into Wepruk, pinning him to the van.

Wepruk's mobility "has been significantly impaired since the incident,"
wrote the judge. "His life has changed from a physically active to a
sedentary one. He has been unable to work. He has also been unable to
engage in activities he enjoyed such as hunting."

- -with file from Vancouver Sun