Family remembers slain hunters in court
EDMONTON • Jacob Sansom’s and Maurice (Morris) Cardinal’s family members came to the Edmonton courthouse Friday with photographs of the two dead Métis-cree hunters.
Sansom’s younger sister Gina Sansom said she wanted to make sure Roger Bilodeau and his son Anthony, the men convicted of killing the hunters, saw the love her family shared.
“You are thieves of our happiness and joys. You are thieves of our futures and memories promised. You were the only thieves present that night, and in this courtroom today,” she said, directly addressing the Bilodeaus.
“You stole so much from us in just a few moments.”
Numerous family members read victim impact statements Friday as a sentencing hearing began for Roger Bilodeau, convicted of two counts of manslaughter on May 31 for his role in the deaths. Bilodeau’s son Anthony — convicted of second-degree murder and manslaughter for killing Cardinal and Sansom, respectively — will be sentenced this fall.
Roger Bilodeau on Friday was sentenced to 10 years for his role in the deaths of the two Métis hunters shot on a rural road. He is to serve about six years because he gets credit of more than 1,600 days in custody during harsh conditions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Sansom, 39, and his uncle Cardinal, 57, had been moose hunting near Glendon, Alta., on March 27, 2020. After nightfall, they pulled into the entrance of Roger Bilodeau’s driveway. At trial, Bilodeau and his son Joseph — just 16 at the time — said they worried the occupants of the truck were thieves.
They chased the vehicle, and Roger Bilodeau called his older son Anthony, who lived on an adjacent farm, and asked him to bring a rifle. He later told RCMP he believed “these sons of bitches are coming to steal.”
Once Anthony arrived, Crown prosecutors said video shows less than 30 seconds passed before he shot Sansom once in the chest, followed by three shots at Cardinal, one of which struck him in the back. Bilodeau claimed Cardinal was armed, but the firearm found by police in Cardinal’s truck was unloaded on the backseat.
Gina Sansom and other family members described how Sansom and Cardinal were knowledge keepers, and how losing both at the same time has had a devastating ripple effect across generations of their family. They talked about how they’re haunted by the thoughts of Sansom and Cardinal being left for dead on the road — men they knew as protectors and providers, who had gone out to bring fresh meat home.
Sarah Sansom, Jacob’s wife, tearfully described the ways she and their three children have changed in the wake of the deaths. “Hate and violence will never steal the love and souls of Jake and Morris.”
The Métis Nation of Alberta called the killings a “stark illustration of the discrimination and contempt experienced by many of our citizens, especially in that area of the province.”
During trial, the defence argued the Bilodeaus were on edge and acted in self-defence because of a surge in rural property crime — though the Crown later revealed neither Roger nor Anthony had ever called police.
After reaching 152 km/h on the gravel road during the chase, Roger Bilodeau pulled in front of the Métis men’s pickup and forced it to slow down. The Bilodeaus claimed when the vehicles came to a stop, Sansom smashed their passenger window with his fist and tried to grab Joseph Bilodeau, shouting about “skinning” them.
After the shooting, the Bilodeaus left without calling police. Anthony Bilodeau destroyed the gun and lied to investigators about having a rifle of that calibre. Anthony Bilodeau’s sentencing hearing is to begin Nov. 17.