SPN staff
A High Prairie man was sentenced to five years in jail for the May 17, 2020 killing of Christopher Valiquette.
Valiquette, 34, a resident of Swan River First nation, died after an altercation in the early hours of a Sunday morning, from what appeared to be stab wounds, numerous press reports cited.
The crime happened in a driveway in southwest Slave Lake. May 19, Vernon Wayne Laboucan, 32, was arrested and charged with second-degree murder.
Laboucan first appeared in Slave Lake provincial court on July 8, 2020. The matter was later put over to Peace River Court of Queen’s Bench for a jury trial scheduled for Feb. 14-25, 2021.
A spokesperson for Queen’s Bench says the case was adjourned several times “until he pleaded guilty to the lesser and included offence of manslaughter on April 13.”
The next day, April 14, Laboucan was sentenced to five years. Taking time already served in custody, Laboucan has 16 months left to serve.
Laboucan, who was also prohibited from possessing any firearms for life, was in custody since May 19.
Sixteen months remaining to serve is an absolute joke. How is it even manslaughter in the first place when it’s a stabbing with purpose??? This Country sucks sometimes …
My bf of 12 years was killed our 4 kids have no father forever our baby was 1yr old and everyday i hear “i miss MY dad” and the unstable idiot that took him away gets a poor mans vacation gotta love how we cant even get his belongings for 70 years or if this guy dies
5 years for killing a human.
Pathetic.
And now he’ll be a graduate of criminal college when his extremely short sentence is done.
The credit for pre trial custody is also a joke.
If he’s not so untrustworthy he’s not deserving of bail then he’s certainly not deserving of credit because he’s untrustworthy.
The criminal justice system is a complete and utter joke