B.C. man who killed 15-year-old girl at Sask. farm gets life sentence for manslaughter
A British Columbia man who killed a teen girl has been sentenced to life in prison with no eligibility for parole for 10 years.
Eduard Viktorovit Baranec killed 15-year-old Katelyn Marie Noble in August 2007.
He slit her throat in the bushes of a farm in Raddison, Sask., according to an agreed statement of facts.
He was sentenced on Friday afternoon in a joint submission at Saskatoon’s Court of Queen’s Bench.
Baranec was charged with first-degree murder, but pleaded guilty to the lesser offence of manslaughter.
“In order to bring finality and certainty to the family, we decided to accept the lesser included offence of manslaughter,” Crown prosecutor Jennifer Claxton-Viczco said.
Baranec met Noble through her then 35-year-old boyfriend, Greg Friend.
Friend and Baranec ran a marijuana grow-op together in Raddison.
Noble moved to the Raddison grow-op from B.C.
Court heard Baranec thought the grow-op was going “sour” and Baranec believed Noble and Friend were “going against him.”
Baranec killed Noble because she was getting too involved with the grow-op, according to a Dec. 3, 2010 confession Baranec made to undercover police officers.
Baranec also hired two hitmen to kill Friend, but it was unsuccessful, according to the agreed statement of facts.
Baranec was part of a Mr. Big sting — an undercover police tactic where officers pose as criminals to elicit a confession from a suspect.
Baranec told the undercover officers he had his pistol ready to go but decided to use the knife because he didn’t have a silencer.
He demonstrated to undercover police how he did it and admitted that he put his hand over her mouth right before he killed her.
Court heard, the evening of the killing, Baranec moved Noble’s body from the bushes to a pre-dug hole on his farm.
After hearing police were searching his property, Baranec dug up Noble’s body, moved her to a remote location and re-buried her.
Noble was reported missing by her family in B.C. The last time she called her mother was August 16, 2007.
Noble’s mother, Leona Noble, travelled from B.C. to address her daughter’s killer.
“You ruined Katelyn’s life, and you ruined your own life by killing her,” Leona said, while looking at Baranec.
Leona said her daughter got involved with the wrong group of people, but believed she had a bright future.
“I did have a lot of faith in her. I do believe she could have gone a long way in her life, and there was a lot of things she wanted to do in her life,” Leona told reporters outside of court.
Noble’s remains have never been found.
Defence lawyer Brian Pfefferle said Baranec would be willing to show investigators to the body, but Baranec can’t find it.
Leona believes Noble is in the Mayfair, Sask. area and urges farmers to be on the lookout so she can bring her daughter home.
Baranec is currently serving a life sentence for a brutal murder in February 2007. Amanpreet Bahia was found stabbed, in a pool of blood with her one-year-old daughter crying next to her.
Baranec was hired as a hitman, by Bahia’s husband, to carry out the killing.
The Noble investigation helped police crack the Bahia case.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'A beautiful soul': Funeral held for baby boy killed in wrong-way crash on Highway 401
A funeral was held on Wednesday for a three-month-old boy who died after being involved in a wrong-way crash on Highway 401 in Whitby last week.
Police handcuff man trying to enter Drake's Toronto mansion
Toronto police say a man was taken into custody outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion Wednesday afternoon after he tried to gain access to the residence.
Biden says he will stop sending bombs and artillery shells to Israel if they launch major invasion of Rafah
U.S. President Joe Biden said for the first time Wednesday he would halt shipments of American weapons to Israel, which he acknowledged have been used to kill civilians in Gaza, if Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu orders a major invasion of the city of Rafah.
U.S. presidential candidate RFK Jr. had a brain worm, has recovered, campaign says
Independent U.S. presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. had a parasite in his brain more than a decade ago, but has fully recovered, his campaign said, after the New York Times reported about the ailment.
What is whooping cough and should Canadians be concerned as Europe declares outbreak?
There is currently a whooping cough epidemic in Europe, with 10 times as many cases compared to the previous two years. While an outbreak has not been declared nationwide in Canada, whooping cough is regularly detected in the country.
Pfizer agrees to settle more than 10K lawsuits over Zantac cancer risk: Bloomberg News
Pfizer has agreed to settle more than 10,000 lawsuits about cancer risks related to the now discontinued heartburn drug Zantac, Bloomberg News reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the deal.
Quebec premier defends new museum on Quebecois nation after Indigenous criticism
Quebec Premier Francois Legault is defending his comments about a new history museum after he was accused by a prominent First Nations group of trying to erase their history.
B.C. theatre to pay $55K to neurodivergent actor in discrimination case
British Columbia's human rights tribunal has awarded a neurodigergent actor, who was diagnosed with sensory and learning disorders, more than $55,000 after finding that a Kelowna theatre company discriminated against him because of his disabilities.
Who's responsible for regulating cannabis stores operating under the sovereignty banner?
It's not quite clear who is supposed to be regulating so-called sovereign cannabis stores or even ensure they're benefiting Indigenous communities.