Man sent to prison in knife-wielding case

LACONIA — An Allenstown man has been sentenced to prison after pleading guilty to criminal threatening and weapons possession charges.

Sean Ipock-Gauthier, 21, of Martinson Lane, in Allenstown, pleaded guilty in Belknap Superior Court to charges of criminal threatening and being a felon in possession of a deadly weapon.

Judge James D. O’Neill III sentenced Ipock-Gauthier on the threatening charge to two to four years in prison, with credit for the 138 days he had spent in confinement prior to the plea-and-sentencing hearing.

On the weapons possession charge, the judge handed down a sentence of 3½ to seven years, with all the time suspended on condition of 10 years’ good behavior.

According to court records, Ipock-Gauthier left a residence at 55 Gilford Avenue, where he had been in an argument, then confronted a passerby on the sidewalk and threatened the person with a knife. Police arrested Ipock-Gauthier soon afterward. He briefly scuffled with police as they were placing him in handcuffs.

Under the terms of a negotiated plea, the Belknap County Attorney’s Office dropped a charge of resisting arrest.

– Michael Mortensen