WARNING: This story contains graphic content. Reader discretion is advised.<\/p>\n
A Burnaby man found guilty of manslaughter in the stabbing of a 17-year-old boy on a Surrey bus on April 11, 2023, apologized to the boy\u2019s family and friends before the court on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m sorry from the bottom of my heart,\u201d Kaiden Mintenko said in court on Feb 17. \u201cTaking the son, brother and friend was never my intention that night, and I am devastated for the loss of a young man in his future. I would do anything in the world to undo what I did that night.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mintenko spoke about the shame and guilt he feels. He said he has learned to manage his anger and impulsive reactions in his three years in pretrial custody, and he wishes he could switch places with the victim.<\/p>\n
The court previously heard Mintenko was prepared to plead guilty to manslaughter before the trial began on Dec. 2, 2024, but the Crown rejected this to pursue a second-degree murder conviction and the case proceeded to trial.<\/p>\n
GUILTY OF THE LESSER OFFENCE<\/p>\n
Justice Terry Schultes delivered his manslaughter verdict against Mintenko on March <\/a>20, 2025<\/a>. He was tasked with deciding if Mintenko is guilty of second-degree murder or the lesser included crime of manslaughter following a 10-day trial in December 2024.<\/p>\n A manslaughter sentence can range from a suspended sentence to life in prison.<\/p>\n The victim was stabbed once in the right upper chest while riding on a Route 503 bus in the 9900-block of King George Boulevard and died in Royal Columbian Hospital that night.<\/p>\n Schultes imposed publication bans on information that would identify the teen and two Crown witnesses. He also ordered a publication ban on the identity of a fourth person.<\/p>\n Sentencing was originally scheduled for August 2025 but has been delayed numerous times as the judge wanted a pre-sentence and psychological assessment report.<\/p>\n On Jan. 2, 2026, the Crown and defence presented submissions and case law, with Crown prosecutor Rod Flannigan arguing for a prison term of 10 to 12 years, minus pretrial custody, and defence lawyer Mark Swartz arguing for six-and-a-half years.<\/p>\n On Jan. 9, Dr. Coupland, a court-ordered expert, was cross-examined by the Crown and defence regarding her pre-sentence and psychological assessment report. Dr. Morgan presented a report assessing his risk management.<\/p>\n The Crown noted that Dr. Coupland met with Mintenko three times, for five-and-a-half hours each time, while Dr. Morgan met with him only once for an hour.<\/p>\n MORAL CULPABILITY<\/p>\n Flannigan and Swartz argued Tuesday (Feb. 17) about several things in the reports \u2013 one being whether or not his conduct disorder, fetal alcohol syndrome (FASD) or ADHD contributed to the stabbing.<\/p>\n Flannigan stated that although Mintenko had \u201csome impairments,\u201d his moral culpability is high.<\/p>\n The court heard during the trial that Mintenko was fascinated with knives at an early age. A Crown witness testified during the trial that a girl who was with Mintenko on the bus knew the victim and would \u201ctry to egg him on\u201d whenever they crossed paths.<\/p>\n Before getting on the bus, the girl told Mintenko the victim was a pedophile, which the court later proved not to be true.<\/p>\n Dr. Morgan noted in their report that Mintenko was \u201cvery upset\u201d when he was told this information and began \u201cruminating about this.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIn my clinical opinion, had Mr. Mintenko not been told that the victim was a pedophile, it is highly unlikely that the index offence would have occurred,\u201d noted the report.<\/p>\n The Crown believed the evidence showed his moral culpability was high.<\/p>\n \u201cThere was a plan to assault the victim and a plan to punch him, although the action of pulling out the knife was impulsive, and he didn\u2019t have the intent to kill. He certainly had the intent to warn. He meant to warn him, and he meant to stab him as a warning,\u201d Flannigan said.<\/p>\n He could have responded differently, the Crown argued, and left the bus through the back door instead of moving toward the victim. He also has a \u201chistory of weapon use coupled with fascination for weapons,\u201d Flannigan said.<\/p>\n This was a purposeful action, he said, which was also \u201cshown in his actions,\u201d after he ran off the bus, discarding clothes and the knife and withholding information.<\/p>\n The court heard during the trial that Mintenko admitted to police that he killed the teen but had also sobbed to the officers: \u201cHe wasn\u2019t supposed to die, I didn\u2019t want it at all, I didn\u2019t want to kill him, I didn\u2019t want to, I wasn\u2019t trying to.\u201d<\/p>\n When a police officer then asked Mintenko what he thought was going to happen then, Mintenko replied, \u201cI wasn\u2019t thinking.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI never wanted to hurt nobody,\u201d he told police.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m f\u2014-ing caught, man,\u201d Mintenko said. \u201cThere\u2019s no doubt about that.\u201d<\/p>\n Dr. Coupland\u2019s conclusion that Mintenko is at high risk of reoffending has been supported by the evidence, the report said.<\/p>\n The defence asked the court to consider the impact that FASD and ADHD had on Mintenko\u2019s executive functioning.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat\u2019s come out of the evidence is it\u2019s challenging for him to develop internal systems of control, that is, learning skills and strategies and inhibitory responses that don\u2019t involve violence, because of the FASD and ADHD combined,\u201d Swartz said.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m quite prepared to accept the possibility that Mr. Mintenko\u2019s decision to use the knife was made impulsively, a situation that some of his cognitive deficits contributed to,\u201d Swartz said. \u201cThat\u2019s precisely the test. It doesn\u2019t have to cause the commission offence, it\u2019s only that it\u2019s contributed in some way to the commission of the offence.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cShould the court accept the FASD and accept the various deficits that he has, then I say that \u2026 it reduces his overall level of moral blameworthiness and some of the considerations with respect to the purpose and principles of sentencing,\u201d Swartz said.<\/p>\n Swartz noted that Mintenko had voluntarily participated in various rehabilitation programs while in custody and has been a \u201cpositive inmate\u201d with \u201cno violence, threats or aggressive behaviour for 34 months.\u201d<\/p>\n Mintenko stated that he had grown a lot over the past three years, while he has been in custody.<\/p>\n \u201cI learned to control my anger and impulsive actions. Instead of reacting impulsively, I stop and think things through,\u201d he said. \u201cI wish I had done that that night, I have a much greater appreciation for the blessings I had and have in my life. I seek comfort through praying to the Lord, and I often ask God for forgiveness.\u201d<\/p>\n He is scheduled to appear in court next Thursday (Feb. 26) to set a sentencing date. As of Feb. 18, Mintenko has been in custody for 1,040 days, which equals four years, three months, and four days, with the standard 1.5-to- one day time-served ratio.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"WARNING: This story contains graphic content. Reader discretion is advised. 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