BC murderer wants to attend sentencing via video due to safety concerns

Article content

A man convicted of the first-degree murder of a 13-year-old girl wants to appear at his sentencing hearing by video because of fears for his safety, his lawyer said at a hearing in the Supreme Court of British Columbia on Tuesday.

Kevin McCollough said Ibrahim Ali's personal presence would raise “real security issues” and the defense was prepared to file additional affidavits to support its position.

Article content

Ali's defense previously told the court that police had informed them that the victim's father had brought a gun to court on the day of the guilty verdict last December.

Although no charges have been laid, the girl's father was given a five-year firearms ban by a Surrey court this month after two licensed guns were seized from his home.

McCullough said at Tuesday's hearing that if Ali is forced to attend the upcoming sentencing in person, he will attend remotely.

“If Mr. Ali will be present, I will definitely not be caught in the gunfire,” he said. “I will not be present. There are material safety issues.”

McCullough told Judge Lance Bernard that he “couldn't believe” the Crown's position that Ali had to be present in person, given events.

“This is not a safe environment for me,” he said of the Vancouver courthouse.

The judge asked the defense attorney to stop speaking and said the court would address the matter of Ali's sentencing at a later date.

The girl's body – whose name is protected by a publication ban – was found in Burnaby's Central Park in July 2017 and Ali was arrested the following year.

Article content

At the end of the eight-month trial last December, a jury took less than 24 hours to reach a guilty verdict.

Ali faces a life sentence with no chance of parole for 25 years.

McCullough said Tuesday that Ali “remains adamant that he is innocent.”

“He insists he did not kill (the victim) and I expect he will say that repeatedly in a public courtroom if forced to come.”

Prosecutor Isobel Keeley said the Crown was opposed to Ali attending his sentencing remotely and the Criminal Code provides that such an appearance should take place in person unless the defense and the Crown agree to one with the court's consent Alternative.

She said members of the murdered girl's family would travel from China to attend and she expected them to make three separate victim impact statements.

One of those will be a video of the victim's father reading his statement in Mandarin, with a translated copy that can be read in English, Keeley said.

Another hearing to confirm the sentencing dates is scheduled for Friday.

Bookmark our website and support our journalism: Don't miss the news you need to know – bookmark VancouverSun.com and TheProvince.com and sign up for our newsletter here.

You can also support our journalism by becoming a digital subscriber: Get unlimited access to The Vancouver Sun, The Province, National Post and 13 other Canadian news sites for just $14 per month. Support us by subscribing today: The Vancouver Sun | The province.

Share this article on your social network