Random stabbing leads to manslaughter verdict

Video caught Monwat Akool Madood killing victim as he slept on a bench

A judge convicted an Edmonton man of manslaughter on Friday for fatally stabbing a stranger on a city sidewalk, despite a defence argument that he was acting “out of an emotional vacuum” at the time of the crime.

Video footage showed Monwat Akool Madood calmly approach the man, who was napping on a bench in front of the Boyle Street Co-Op, on July 30, 2011. He stabbed him once in the stomach. Madood did not know the victim, Eric Janvier.

A defence expert witness argued Madood was “unconscious and unaware of his actions” at the time of the stabbing and was in a dissociative state. But the judge questioned why Madood, 24, appears able to selectively recall events from that summer day.

“I have no explanation for why (Madood) recalled events for before the stabbing ... and after it ... but not the stabbing itself,” Judge Stephen Hillier said in a written decision, rejecting the argument Madood experienced an “amnestic envelope” that day.

Curiously, Madood approached the crime scene less than half an hour after the stabbing. When questioned by police who observed his bloody sweatshirt, he was initially cooperative and described being in a fight. When showed the video footage of the stabbing later, Madood appeared surprised.

Hillier questioned whether the psychologist called by the defence explored whether Madood was simply drunk.

Police officers did not smell alcohol on Madood but noted odd behaviour, including that he was stumbling and had red eyes. Officers who dealt with Madood testified they didn’t know if he was under the influence of drugs or suffered mental health problems.

“(The officers) observed behaviours which would be entirely consistent with intoxication, and the video corroborates the admission by (Madood) that he was drinking with friends.”

Court heard that Madood had a history of alcoholism.

Born in Sudan, Madood was six years old when he and his mother were on a crowded bus that tipped while crossing a bridge, killing several people. His mother suffered severe injuries in the crash. As a child, Madood was known to sleepwalk.

After moving to Canada as an adolescent, he lived with one of his brothers, who physically abused him. Those incidents may have led to post-traumatic stress disorder that diminished over time, the psychologist testified.

During the trial, the judge ordered a psychiatric assessment on Madood to determine if he might be found not criminally responsible for the crime due to mental illness. But Madood would not participate in the assessment.

In the interview room with police, Madood said: “I’ll get a lawyer, get checked out by a doctor or something. I don’t know what the hell was wrong with me. No normal person would do that.”

Madood will return to court on Oct. 20 for sentencing.

Janvier, was a well-known figure at the Boyle Street Co-Op for over a decade. More than 100 people gathered at the Co-Op after his murder to celebrate his life.

I don’t know what the hell was wrong with me. No normal person would do that.