RCMP have issued a Canada-wide arrest warrant for Markel Jason Downey after Nova Scotia's highest court overturned his acquittal on charges related to a shooting that injured three people and ordered a new trial.

"We know that someone out there knows where he is at," said RCMP Cpl. Dal Hutchinson.

"We've been exhausting multiple options including reaching out to family, friends and community members in and around Cole Harbour and surrounding areas with hopes that he can be encouraged to turn himself in."

Downey, 22, is facing a new trial in relation to a home invasion in Cole Harbour on Nov. 30, 2014, one that left Ashley MacLean Kearse paralyzed from the waist down. He was accused of being one of four people who burst into the house.

In February 2017, Downey was acquitted of 28 charges, including three counts of attempted murder, and walked away a free man following a trial in Nova Scotia Supreme Court.

But the Crown appealed that ruling. In a decision released this week, the Nova Scotia Court of Appeal said the trial judge, Michael Wood, had made "serious errors" when he considered evidence identifying the shooter.

"He ignored highly relevant evidence, and considered irrelevant evidence in his reasoning," said the Appeal Court decision. "He misconstrued the Crown's position concerning significant corroborative evidence connecting the respondent to the shooting."

Downey represented Nova Scotia as a boxer when he won a gold medal in the 2011 Canada Games, which were held in Halifax.

Police are advising people not to approach Downey and to contact them immediately if they see him by dialing 911 or calling 902-490-5020.