Sask. MLA fends off pen-wielding carjacker

A Saskatchewan Party MLA was stabbed as many as seven times with a pen as he fended off someone trying to steal his car on Thursday.

Lyle Stewart, 58, was on his way to work at the legislature in Regina when the attack occurred around 8:30 a.m.

The former cabinet minister, who represents the riding of Thunder Creek, was not seriously hurt. He was at the legislature later in the morning, sharing his story with reporters.

Stewart said he was west of Regina heading toward Dewdney Avenue, and had stopped when he saw a truck in the ditch.  

A man who he assumed was the driver walked toward him. He was going to offer the man a lift when the incident took a turn to the sinister.

"He informed me he had a knife and told me to get out of the car," Stewart said. "I believe he was stoned."

At that point, the man forced his way into Stewart's car, and a furious struggle ensued.

'The RCMP phoned back — I'm getting beat on the head with my mirror' —MLA Lyle Stewart recounts the attack

The man started driving with Stewart hanging half out of the vehicle, with the car on a collision course toward the stalled truck.

Stewart grabbed hold of the wheel and steered the car away from the truck.

The attacker then stabbed him with a pen, and as Stewart attempted to dial 911, his car mirror was torn off.

Stewart burst out laughing as he recounted what happened next.

"The RCMP phoned back — I'm getting beat on the head with my mirror."

The struggle went on for 30 minutes. Stewart got the upper hand and held the man until police arrived.

The MLA ended up with a bandaged hand.

"I'm all right, just a cut on the back of the hand," he said.

Stewart said he learned later that the man was on the run from the police.

Clayton Friday, 45, of Pense, Sask., has been charged with armed robbery, assault with a weapon and assault causing bodily harm.

He's in police custody pending his first court appearance.       

As it turns out, Friday's hometown indicates that he is one of Stewart's constituents. The Thundercreek constituency covers a mostly rural area of southwest Saskatchewan. 

The community of Pense is included in the boundaries, and is located on the easternmost edge of the constituency. The village of 507 people is about 30 kilometres west of Regina.