A Calgary millionaire, a former police officer, and the officer’s wife, have been convicted in a harassment case.

The jury finding millionaire Ken Carter guilty of criminal harassment in trial that centered on a custody battle between Carter and his ex-girlfriend. The woman claimed she was the subject of a campaign by a private investigation firm to discredit and intimidate her.

As well, the jury delivery a guilty verdict on a charge of criminal harassment against former Calgary police officer Steve Walton. A mistrial was declared for a second charge of harassment against Walton’s wife, Heather, who is a former civilian member of the CPS.

The Waltons were also convicted of bribery of a police officer and a firearms charge.

Prosecutors say that in 2012, Carter paid the Waltons $800,000 to harass and discredit the woman and try to gain custody of her daughter.

It was a long trial, with the jury deliberating for several days until announcing the verdict on Friday afternoon.

“A difficult trial for Crown and defense and the court and the jury,” said prosecutor Ryan Presad. “And one that saw the rigours of the justice system go through every possible hurdle for the jury to reach its verdict.”

Presad has no opinion on the mistrial, but the Crown can choose whether or not to pursue a second trial for that charge against Mrs. Walton.

In the meantime, defense counsel for the Waltons are proceeding forward with the pre-sentencing, with submissions scheduled for October 26th.

Alain Hepner, who represents Mr. Walton, said they had some problems with the case.

“There were a lot of decisions that were made by the trial with which we disagreed, but that doesn’t guarantee anything. We have to move forward to the next phase now.”

He would not elaborate more on any plans for an appeal.

The Crown and defense also thanked the jury for their time, as it was a tough case for them.

“It was not easy for them, and I think that’s what a mistrial tells us; that it was an incredibly difficult set of deliberations for these jurors,” said Kelsey Sitar, the counsel for Mrs. Walton.

“I know the jury was very intense, and some of them were very emotional during the verdict. It was noticeable to all of us — certainly, two women were very, very distraught,” said Hepner.

Carter and the Waltons sat largely motionless in the box while the verdicts were read.

Carter’s ex-girlfriend did not testify in the case.

48 hours to surrender: Businessman and former Calgary cop must begin serving prison time

A former Calgary police officer and a local businessman must turn themselves in within 48 hours to begin serving their sentences for criminal harassment of a woman who was stalked during a bitter custody dispute.

Steve Walton, 65, and Ken Carter, 71, were found guilty of harassment in 2018. Walton was also found guilty of bribing a police officer, as was his wife, Heather.

Walton and Carter were each handed a three-year prison sentence while Heather was given 15 months on house arrest.

On Thursday, the Alberta Court of Appeal rejected the trio's bid to have their convictions overturned after arguments were heard in January.

The Waltons were running an unlicensed private investigation and security company in 2012 when Carter hired them amid his split with his ex-girlfriend, Akele Taylor.

Carter and Taylor shared custody of an infant daughter at the time, and the services provided by the Waltons and their employees — many of them active, suspended or retired Calgary police officers — morphed into a campaign to help Carter secure sole custody of his daughter.

The harassment included accessing police databases for information on Taylor, following her after placing a GPS tracking device on her car and offering her friends, family and associates money in exchange for negative information on her.

Over the course of about 18 months, Carter paid nearly $1,000,000 to the Waltons.

Six people, including the Waltons and Carter, were charged criminally in 2016. Two separate trials took place.

During the 2018 trial, Taylor's mother testified her daughter became so stressed during the harassment period that she became suicidal.

In the end, all six were convicted of various crimes connected to the harassment of Taylor and the related police corruption.

After Carter was convicted in 2018, he left for Russia, where he spent seven months and missed his sentencing hearing, telling the court he had fallen ill in that country.

Carter was finally sentenced in 2020.

A third trial concluded earlier this month with Carter and Walton acquitted on perjury charges. The pair had been accused of lying under oath about their business relationship during Carter's family court trial in 2014.

Now that their conviction appeals have been dealt with, Carter and Walton's sentence appeals will be argued.