Guelph killer sentenced to life with no chance of parole for 19 years
GULEPH — Stephan Dietrich, 46, has been sentenced to life in prison with no eligibility for parole for another 19 years.
Last month, he pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in the death of his wife, Seble (Mimi) Dietrich. The court heard he hit her repeatedly in the head with a shovel and buried her in the backyard.
The Crown and defence put forward a joint submission on Thursday at Guelph’s Superior Court of Justice for Dietrich to spend life in prison without chance of parole for 22 years from the time of his arrest in 2015. Justice Bruce Durno agreed with their plan. In his judgment, he called Dietrich’s actions “egregious, manipulative and deceitful.”
The downstairs courtroom at Guelph’s Superior Court of Justice was packed on Thursday morning with supporters of Mimi. Around 40 people filled the seats. Most were members from Kitchener’s Meheret Evangelical Church — a community in which Mimi was an active member.
There were 10 victim impact statements brought forward and three were read aloud to the court.
Helen Wondimagegnehu, one of Mimi’s sisters who flew in from Seattle, stood facing Justice Bruce Durno with her back facing her sister’s murderer. She didn’t turn to face him and didn’t look at him as she walked back to her seat, in tears.
“For three years now, I have tried so hard to make sense of this situation … I never imagined that I would lose my sister with someone she had trusted and loved more than anything,” read Wondimagegnehu.
She said her sister was more than just family to her — she was a friend, a guide, a second mother. She was the one who made the phone calls and connected the family together.
“But Stephan divided our family the day he ended her life,” she said, adding the family’s relationship with Mimi’s children was also severed.
“The loss of my sister is beyond words … I’m always feeling sad, lonely and crying by watching Mimi’s songs or her show posted on YouTube and Vimeo.
“I have to say, it hurts a lot. I hope it gets better, but I am not confident it will get better.”