Man sentenced four years in fatal frying pan beating
Victim had escaped Sudan violence, was studying to become a nurse
Chatim Thor Metkurjock’s life has been in turmoil since his older brother Gatleak, who came here with him as a Sudanese refugee in 2010, was beaten to death with a frying pan at an alcohol- fuelled southwest house party 3 ½ years ago.
The pain was eased somewhat on Monday after his 24- year- old brother’s killer, Mark Pious, made a heartfelt apology to him and was sentenced for manslaughter to four years in prison for his actions on Jan. 25, 2012.
“It was really important to tell the court what this man did to me, so he won’t do it to society again or do things that can harm society again,” Chatim, 19, said outside court.
“My brother, he was everything to me — role model, friend, brother — without him I wouldn’t be here today. It was rough in Africa.
“Everyone makes mistakes in the world, all humans are not perfect, so the apology was important to me. It doesn’t take the pain away from me, but I understand and have respect for his apology and everything.”
Court of Queen’s Bench Justice David Gates, calling it a sad case that involved a senseless and unnecessary death, accepted a joint sentencing submission offered by defence lawyer Andre Ouellette and Crown prosecutor Jayme Williams for an adult sentence for the now 20- year- old killer, who was just 17 at the time.
He said it doesn’t appear there was any valid reason for Pious, who also came from Sudan a decade ago, to clobber the victim over the head with the frying pan at least five times and kick him while he was down at the party in the 2100 block of 16th Street S. W., other than mental issues coupled with the consumption of alcohol and drugs that night.
“Mr. Pious has several mental disorders and ADD ( Attention Deficit Disorder), plus substance abuse,” Gates said.
“He has no memory of the evening, after he says he was punched by the victim ... it should not have led to the frying pan response.
“There appears to be very little motive for this attack, other than Mr. Pious sensed he’d been assaulted and responded in this fashion.”
Anthony Brothers, who was 20 at the time of the incident, previously also pleaded guilty to manslaughter for his role in the death and was sentenced to four years.
Ouellette said outside court an adult sentence was appropriate for his client, who suffers from schizophrenia and psychotic disorders, and believed he would have had a difficult time convincing a judge to give his client a youth disposition.
“He has learned something because while incarcerated he has had to take his medication,” Ouellette said. “When he was living alone, he wasn’t taking his medication. If he wants to get anywhere in life now, he must take his medicine, stay away from alcohol, drugs and a peer group conductive to abusing drugs and alcoholism.”
Chatim said in his victim impact statement that his father was killed in front of him by his country’s government, then he and his six siblings — five of whom are still in a refugee camp — fled with their mother and essentially became orphans.
He and his brother came to Canada in 2010, and everything was going well until the fatal incident. His brother was studying at Bow Valley College to become a nurse.
“When my brother was still alive, I saw my life as a puzzle with him combined to form the picture that was my life,” he told court.
“The man standing here today took a piece away from that puzzle, one that can never return.
“I am incomplete without it, without him. We shared memories that nobody shares, and I can’t relive those memories. I can’t replace that puzzle piece, and, as a result, I will never be the same again. My view of the world also changed ... when I had questions, my brother answered them. He always had the answers.”
The judge ordered Pious to provide a DNA sample and prohibited him from possessing or using any firearms or other weapons for life.