Man found guilty in 2021 murder
Leonard Aquilina 54, died after being stabbed at home
A jury has found a Niagara man guilty of second-degree murder in the 2021 stabbing death of a Crystal Beach man.
Jurors deliberated for more than eight hours in Superior Court of Justice in Welland on Thursday without reaching a verdict in the case against Tristan Skelton.
Deliberations continued Friday morning and the eight-woman, four-man jury returned with a verdict after about four hours.
Skelton, 32, had pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder in connection with the stabbing death of Leonard Aquilina, who had worked for Clean Harbors Canada Inc. in Thorold, a company that manages hazardous waste.
First-degree murder is a homicide that is both planned and deliberate. The lesser and included offence of second-degree murder is generally defined as a killing that occurs without planning and may only have been intended to cause harm, rather than death.
A conviction of second-degree murder carries a minimum sentence of life in prison with no possibility of parole for 10 years.
Jurors were given the option to recommend how many years Skelton should serve before he is allowed to apply for parole.
Five jurors recommended not less than 20 years, three jurors recommended 15 to 20 years and four jurors made no recommendation.
Skelton’s lawyer had maintained throughout the four-week trial his client was guilty of manslaughter. A manslaughter conviction carries no minimum sentence.
The defendant, who did not testify at trial, is expected to return to court later this month to confirm a sentencing date.
Fifty-four-year-old Aquilina was stabbed twice in the torso after Skelton and another man forced their way into his home on
Mathewson Avenue on June 9, 2021.
The knife wounds pierced several major organs and arteries and Aquilina died of massive blood loss.
One witness testified at trial Aquilina’s girlfriend told several people she had been in an argument with her partner that night and she wanted Skelton to “scare him.”
Niagara Regional Police arrested five people in connection with the investigation.
Andrew Blais, 31, and Rebecca Eden, 42, of both of Fort Erie; 42-year-old Rikki Anger, of St. Catharines, and 63-year-old Hendrika Skelton, of Lincoln, also face charges.
Their matters remain before the courts.