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A man found guilty of manslaughter in the killing of Winnipeg restaurant owner Kyriakos Vogiatzakis outside the Cork & Flame in January 2024 has been sentenced to seven years in prison.
“Today, justice was finally served,” the victim’s brother, Michael Vogiatzakis, said outside the courthouse after the sentence was delivered Thursday morning.
“It’s not going to bring Kyriakos back. No sentence will. But the judge’s decision has taken the pain away a little bit.”
Curtis Dalebozik, 40, was convicted in February after a trial that heard he killed Vogiatzakis following an argument that turned violent in the parking lot of the restaurant.
Court of King’s Bench Justice Sadie Bond said Thursday that Dalebozik was “living a solitary life” in a nearby motel room at the time, “without employment, friends or companionship.”
Security camera video showed Vogiatzakis confronting Dalebozik before a fight ensued and the pair ended up on the ground.
WATCH | Curtis Dalebozik convicted of manslaughter in fatal fight:
Man found guilty in fatal fight with Winnipeg restaurant owner
A judge found Curtis Dalebozik guilty of manslaughter Thursday, ruling his actions during a January 2024 fight with 51-year-old restaurant owner Kyriakos Vogiatzakis went beyond self-defence.
Bond said there was no evidence of what started the altercation. While Dalebozik didn’t start the fight, the assault on Vogiatzakis that followed “was sustained and ended with obvious gratuitous violence, after Mr. Vogiatzakis was rendered unconscious.”
“Whatever the genesis of the dispute, he was in an argument with Mr. Vogiatzakis that became a physical fight, and in defending himself, he went too far — much too far,” Bond said.
Dalebozik had claimed self-defence in the killing, but prosecutors argued he used excessive force. A pathologist testified a combination of blunt-force trauma, asphyxiation and physical stress led to Vogiatzakis going into cardiac arrest.
Dalebozik was also given a concurrent sentence of 60 days for a separate charge of uttering threats, for saying, “I know where you work. I’ll lay you down too,” to a restaurant employee who confronted him after the fight.
With enhanced credit for time he’s already served in custody, Dalebozik is expected to serve about 3½ more years.