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He said he expected to plead not guilty to the new string of charges.

Knape, who is out on bail and lives in a ground-floor unit in a boarding house near the Downtown Eastside, said he had a part-time job but “that’s over.”

“If I were the upper echelon of law enforcement I’d be really trying to stop the import of drugs or the sale of them on the street, really, because if you cut that out … minimum 50 per cent of property crime (would drop).”

Archived court records show Knape has been battling addiction most of his adult life. In an apology letter to one of his victims in 2007, Knape said he was sorry his “drug-addicted life” had caused so much grief. “I blame street drugs 100% for my state of mind at the time. I am telling you this not as an excuse but as an explanation.”

At first glance, Knape’s public record resembles a comedy of errors. Last August, he had to dial 911 when, during a botched attempt to break through the skylight of a multi-million-dollar home, he got stuck on a steep-pitched roof and couldn’t find a way down.

A 1998 Vancouver police report shows he once tumbled off a roof and injured his ankle. In his possession at the time were “wrenches and a screwdriver, a slingshot and rocks.”

But court records, including letters of support from Knape’s family, offer some insights into his past.

Knape was born in Victoria. His parents divorced when he was young.

He got hooked on drugs as a teenager.

He has two brothers and two sisters. One of those sisters, who lives in England, once described Knape as “generous to a fault” and someone who was “wonderful with children.”