People close to a 23-year-old man who was stabbed to death in the St-Laurent borough nearly three years ago had very emotional reactions at the Montreal courthouse on Friday when they learned the killer\u2019s sentence.<\/p>\n
\u201cTwo years is nothing,\u201d one man yelled, while several people in the third-floor courtroom began to shout as Quebec Superior Court Justice H\u00e9l\u00e8ne Di Salvo sentenced Uriel P\u00e9pin Rojas, 23, for killing Liam Angelo Rodriguez.<\/p>\n
Di Salvo managed to calm everyone down after repeating a second time that the case was one of the most complex she has ever presided over and that determining the sentence was a difficult task because of the context of the homicide.<\/p>\n
The evidence heard at trial revealed P\u00e9pin Rojas was protecting himself from a brutal assault and had been stabbed when he killed Rodriguez. This happened during an argument over a woman.<\/p>\n
The judge also advised the man who shouted to consider that the punishment P\u00e9pin Rojas received Friday is actually a seven-year prison term: When the time P\u00e9pin Rojas has already served behind bars since his 2023 arrest is calculated, he had two years and 11 months left on his sentence.<\/p>\n
In May, prosecutor Philippe Valli\u00e8res-Roland recommended a sentence of between 10 and 12 years, but he said it could be reduced to nine years if the court determined P\u00e9pin Rojas was acting in self-defence. Defence lawyer Pierre-Richard Deshommes suggested a sentence of between four and seven years.<\/p>\n
After Di Salvo delivered her decision on Friday, one person was so emotional they were escorted out of the courtroom by the special constable assigned to the room. Other special constables were called in to help maintain order, but Rodriguez\u2019s loved ones calmed down after a couple of minutes of shouting.<\/p>\n
The outbursts began after Di Salvo said: \u201cThis case shook me up. The case was very complicated. I really hope, for the family of the victim, that this decision \u2026\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt isn\u2019t fair what happened,\u201d one of Rodriguez\u2019s relatives said, interrupting the judge. \u201cNo one deserves what happened, because (P\u00e9pin Rojas) killed someone. Ten cuts from a knife, (one) was 15 centimetres (deep). It wasn\u2019t a pocket knife.\u201d<\/p>\n
The woman\u2019s outburst set off the loud commotion in the courtroom.<\/p>\n
\u201cI know this is emotional. I know it is difficult to hear,\u201d the judge said while restoring order. \u201cI know that a seven-year sentence is not a life sentence, but even a life sentence would not change anything.<\/p>\n
\u201cYour pain \u2026 I heard you (when Di Salvo heard sentence arguments in May). I felt it and I want to share with you that I will remember it the rest of my life because of all the difficulties it brought to me. No sentence would be sufficient for the family.\u201d<\/p>\n
On Oct. 1, 2023, P\u00e9pin Rojas travelled to a condo building on Alexis-Nihon Blvd. to see a woman he had been dating for nine months. As was described in a joint statement of facts entered into the court record late last year when P\u00e9pin Rojas pleaded guilty to manslaughter, he believed he was still in a relationship with the woman.<\/p>\n
\u201c(The woman) had another perception of the situation,\u201d the document states.<\/p>\n
On the day in question, P\u00e9pin Rojas made his way to the woman\u2019s fifth-floor condominium. She was not expecting him and was surprised to see him at her door. He forced his way in and found the woman with Rodriguez.<\/p>\n
The homicide victim delivered the first blow in the fight. The woman testified during the preliminary inquiry that Rodriguez assaulted P\u00e9pin Rojas severely for roughly two minutes.<\/p>\n
Last month, during sentence arguments, P\u00e9pin Rojas testified that he was assaulted by fellow detainees at the Montreal Detention Centre following his arrest for the homicide. He alleged that he was told the assault was ordered by people who knew Rodriguez. <\/p>\n
On Friday, Di Salvo listed the assault at the detention centre as one of the mitigating factors in determining the sentence. Other mitigating factors included P\u00e9pin Rojas\u2019s guilty plea to manslaughter, that he had been defending himself and he sustained serious injuries.<\/p>\n
The judge also noted that P\u00e9pin Rojas did not bring the knife used in the homicide to the woman\u2019s condo and that Rodriguez delivered the first blow.<\/p>\n