Canada News
Young man sentencing for killing restaurant owner in La Ronge, Sask.
LA RONGE, Canada— A 19-year-old man has been handed a seven-year prison sentence for his role in the killing earlier this year of Simon Grant, the owner of a restaurant in La Ronge, Sask.
Austin Bird pleaded guilty to manslaughter last month.
Grant, 64, was assaulted during an armed robbery at his restaurant, Louisiana’s Bar-B-Que, and died in hospital two days later.
Three other males facing charges in Grant’s death still have their matters before the courts.
An interim publication ban on details related to the case is still in effect.
The Crown had been seeking an eight-year sentence, while the defence was asking for five years.
Grant’s widow, Cora Laich, told radio station MBC outside court on Thursday that she has mixed feelings about the sentence.
“I have to say that it meant a lot to me that he pled guilty and he stood up for what he did,” she said. “I don’t say that I agree totally with the sentence.
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Laich no longer lives in La Ronge, but said it was important for her to attend the court proceedings.
“It feels OK to come back because of the support I have here and knowing Simon would want me to be here,” she said.