Man who pleaded guilty in fatal stabbing changes story

A fatal stabbing in downtown Montreal three years ago had a ripple effect and caused tension in an Inuit community more than 1,400 kilometres away from the city.

Earlier this year, Bobby Tukkiapik, 33, pleaded guilty to manslaughter in the stabbing death of Adamie Qumaluk, 32, a fellow Inuk man. According to a joint statement of facts read into the court record earlier this year, they had argued over a drug transaction and, in the heat of the argument, Tukkiapik pulled out a knife and stabbed Qumaluk four times.

On Friday, Superior Court Justice Pierre Labrie heard sentencing arguments in the case and learned that prosecutor Jasmine Guillaume and defence lawyer Louis Miville Deschenes are far apart on what they see as a fit sentence. Guillaume is seeking a 10year prison term while Deschene recommended his client be sentenced to the time he has already served since his arrest near the end of 2015.

Tukkiapik tossed a wrench into sentencing hearing when he testified Friday and said he lied when he pleaded guilty on March 29 about stabbing Qumaluk over drugs.

Rather, he said, the dispute involved a woman and it began in a karaoke bar on Ste-Catherine St. W., near Fort St., where many Inuit like to hang out. He said Qumaluk followed him outside and began punching him. He said he pulled out the knife to protect himself.

“I wish it never happened. He was my age. It could have been me. I know how my family would feel if it was me,” Tukkiapik said. “I’m just very sorry.”

Guillaume challenged Tukkiapik’s credibility while crossexamining him. She noted that no witness saw Qumaluk strike him.

On Oct. 3, Labrie ordered the preparation of a Gladue report, a pre-sentencing evaluation that takes into account an offender’s Indigenous background.

Sonia Gagné, a court worker specialized in preparing Gladue reports, said Tukkiapik’s “parents and grandparents were survivors of the residential school system” and painted a bleak portrait of his upbringing in Kuujjuaq, which included his father’s suicide.

Gagné also said news of Qumaluk’s death was not well received in Puvirnituq, his village on the western side of Nunavik.

She said Tukkiapik told her that his relatives in Nunavik received a series of threats directed at him and that his mother called Qumaluk’s father to apologize for what happened.

Guillaume’s cross-examination will continue.