A jury found Anthony Bilodo guilty of second-degree murder and manslaughter in the shooting of two half-breed hunters on a country road in Alberta.
They also found his father, Roger Bilodo, guilty of two counts of manslaughter.
Their lawyers claim that the shooting was in self-defense.
The Crown claims the defendants took the law into their own hands when they prosecuted Jacob Sansum and his uncle Maurice Cardinal because they believed the hunters had been on the family farm before and tried to steal.
Prosecutors said the shooting was not justified in any way.
“It’s just a case of taking the law into your own hands, and it’s a case of tragic results,” Crown lawyer Jeff Rudiac told the jury in his closing remarks Monday.
“Two innocent men, Jake and Maurice, had absolutely no business dying that night… These two boys did nothing wrong.
Jurors heard that Sansum and the cardinal were hunting moose before being found dead on the side of the road near Glendon, Alta, in March 2020.
Sansum was shot once in the chest and Cardinal was hit three times in the shoulder.
The jurors, who began deliberations over Monday’s dinner, returned the sentences late Tuesday afternoon.
They found Anthony Bilodo guilty of second-degree murder for the shooting of a cardinal and guilty of manslaughter for Sansom’s shooting.
The court heard that on the night of March 27, 2020, Anthony Bilodo was called by his father and younger brother, who were chasing a white Dodge pickup truck, which they suspected had been on the family farm earlier in the day.
Roger Bilodo told his older son to meet with them and bring a protection pistol, the court said.
Anthony Bilodo testified that his phone was still connected to his father’s Bluetooth speaker when he heard banging and cracking of glass before his brother shouted for someone not to kill or injure his father.
The court heard that Sansum smashed the passenger window of Roger Bilodo’s Ford F-150 with his bare fists, after which he allegedly attacked Joseph and Roger Bilodo in the truck.
When he arrived, Anthony Bilodo said he shot Sansum because the man attacked him. He also said he heard Sansum calling for a cardinal to take a gun so they could kill him.
Anthony Bilodo said he shot Cardinal after the hunter attacked him with a large pistol. He said the cardinal had told him he would kill him in retaliation for shooting Sansom.
Anthony Bilodo testified that he saw the Cardinal’s pistol with a cartridge attached and feared for everyone’s safety. He said he shot the Cardinal twice in the back of the shoulder.
The prosecutor said the killings were illegal because there was no threat of violence when Anthony Bilodo was told to bring a gun.
Rudiac said that Anthony Bilodo was the first person to produce a gun and aggravate the situation.
Brian Beresh, a lawyer representing Anthony Bilodo, told the jury to acquit his client because he had no choice but to shoot the two hunters.
Beresh focuses on the alcohol levels of Sansom and Cardinal. A toxicology report shows that Sansom’s blood alcohol level is almost three times the driving limit, while Cardinal’s is almost twice the limit. The prosecution said it was irrelevant to the case.
The court also heard that after the shooting, Anthony Bilodo cut his gun and dumped it in the dump. He also dumped the lights from his armor to another dump. He testified that he did so because he was in shock and did not want to go to jail to protect his family.
Sean Gerstel, Roger Bilodo’s lawyer, said his client had only followed Sansom and the cardinal to ask them why they were in his yard.
“Roger’s actions tonight were a mistake, but they were not criminal,” Gerstel told the jury.
He said Bilodeaus was on the phone about two and a half minutes before the shooting and could not develop an “illegal plan”.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published on May 31, 2022.
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