After a decade since tattoo shop owner Wasfi Ghalban was tragically killed during a home invasion robbery at his Wellesley Street apartment, Lance Burkhard, one of the two men involved in the incident, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder on Wednesday.
This plea follows an eight-month period after the Court of Appeal overturned Burkhard’s first-degree murder conviction and ordered a new trial.
Ontario’s top court determined that the trial judge did not properly guide the jury. Burkhard has been incarcerated since his arrest on March 31, 2016, and a jury found him guilty of first-degree murder in December 2018.
Previously sentenced to life without parole for 25 years for first-degree murder, second-degree murder allows for parole eligibility between 10 and 25 years. Defense attorneys John Struthers and Deniz Sarikaya are requesting an 11-year period before parole becomes possible, while Crown prosecutor Scott Patterson suggests it should be set at 15 years.
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The agreed statement of facts revealed that on December 1, 2014, Ghalban, age 47, was fatally stabbed inside his apartment located at 200 Wellesley St. E.
Four individuals were charged with first-degree murder back then. Philip Frauts orchestrated the robbery and later pled guilty to manslaughter. Christopher Fuller acted as the lookout and also pled guilty to manslaughter.
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Lance Burkhard and Kyle Schindermann entered Ghalban’s residence and took part in his murder. Schindermann testified against Burkhard during the trial and subsequently pleaded guilty to second-degree murder. He received a life sentence with no chance of parole for at least 11 years.
The court had previously heard that Ghalban operated a side business creating fake IDs for $50 to $60 each within Ultimate Tattoos, his Yonge Street establishment. According to case details, he sometimes produced up to 40 or 50 fake IDs daily and kept the cash earned in his apartment.
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The ambush occurred right at Ghalban’s door where they forced him inside unexpectedly. Amidst struggling against them physically; somehow managing even getting out onto balcony calling out for assistance drew attention quickly toward him again post entry by force!
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Get the day’s top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines delivered straight to your inbox once every day. In fall of 2014, Frauts worked under Ghalban as a tattoo artist and shared half of his earnings from customers with Ghalban to help cover rent and operational costs. Frauts became aware of the fake IDs operation and grew disgruntled; he plotted to rob Ghalban of illegal cash stored in his apartment. The court had previously learned that Frauts knew about significant amounts of cash being taken from Ghalban’s apartment earlier without police involvement. Story continues below Frauts approached Schindermann-an acquaintance from long ago-about his plan. He mentioned that Ghalban was frugal enough not to turn on heat during winter months just so he wouldn’t have to pay extra bills. Avoiding direct involvement due to fear of being recognized during the robbery himself led Frauts into persuading Schindermann into executing it instead. Having experience with home invasions himself-and needing money because he owed drug dealers-Schindermann brought Burkhard into this scheme as well; knowing Burkhard was seasoned in such activities. He also recruited Fuller as their lookout. D-day arrived when Burkhard along with Schindermann executed their planned home invasion against Ghalban without any intention initially aimed at killing him. While Burkhard carried a broken BB gun for intimidation purposes; Schindermann held onto a knife for potential threat purposes. The duo made their way into the building before splitting paths towards the second floor while waiting outside Ghalban’s unit until Fuller informed them when he was arriving home via phone call. Trending Now
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The ambush occurred right at Ghalban’s door where they forced him inside unexpectedly. Amidst struggling against them physically; somehow managing even getting out onto balcony calling out for assistance drew attention quickly toward him again post entry by force!Soon afterward though came stabbing inflicted upon neck which ultimately injured jugular vein severely causing distress overall! Then afterward punches thrown followed immediately alongside choking actions committed meanwhile searching through belongings openly!
