THUNDER BAY – Jeffrey Kakegamic will serve jail time for the stabbing death of a 48-year-old man that a Crown lawyer labelled as a “very tragic outcome for a very unique set of circumstances.”
On Monday Kakegamic was sentenced to seven years in prison less time already served for inflicting an ultimately fatal stab wound upon Martin Fabian Achneepineskum in December 2012, after previously pleading guilty to manslaughter in November.
Justice Bruce Fitzpatrick accepted a joint submission from the Crown and defence, which will see the 35-year-old ultimately serve an additional two years and four months behind bars. Kakegamic was originally charged with second-degree murder and two counts of breach of probation.
The agreed statement of facts were read into the court, which described the events leading up to the Dec. 2, 2012 death of Achneepineskum at a shared McIntyre Street residence.
During a preliminary hearing an eyewitness testified he woke up in his bedroom and saw Achneepineskum sleeping on the floor with a man standing over him, holding what were described as a long knife and fork. The man then raised the knife and drove it into Achneepineskum’s leg.
The witness said he did not recognize the man, who was accompanied by a woman in the living room of the apartment. Emergency responders were called at 3:26 p.m. and when they arrived the man reappeared, who the witness identified to police.
The man, Kakegamic, was immediately arrested. An officer asked Kakegamic if anybody inside the residence needed help.
Kakegamic, who was intoxicated, responded, “F*** him, he doesn’t need any help.”
The knife and fork, which both tested positive for Achneepineskum’s blood, were found outside the residence. The victim’s blood was also found on the shoes of Kakegamic’s female acquaintance.
A medical examiner previously testified the cause of death was loss of blood due to the stab wound, which had an extremely low likelihood of causing death. The medical examiner said even with anatomical knowledge, it would be difficult to intentionally cause death with a single stab wound to the thigh.
Crown lawyer Elaine Burton described the stabbing as “inexplicable,” stating the victim was asleep and minding his own business when the attack took place. She added it’s unlikely anyone will ever know what prompted it.
A victim impact statement prepared by Achneepineskum's daughter was read to the court, which detailed how she had "never felt this much loss or pain" and how her "world was ripped apart."
Defence counsel Oliver Abergel said it was unlikely Kakegamic’s intent was to kill and no one would have foreseen what happened. He added the level of violence, consisting of just the one stab, was at the lower end of the spectrum for manslaughter.
The start of the hearing was delayed by more than 45 minutes after the defence lawyers received strange claims.
Abergel told the court he was approached by a member of Achneepineskum’s family, who initially approached the Crown, and raised doubt about Kakegamic’s guilt. The family member cited an alternate suspect and questioned the eyewitness testimony about seeing the stabbing.
Despite that, which Abergel acknowledged could be a factor if the case had gone to trial, Kakegamic chose to stand by his guilty plea and proceed with the sentencing.
Burton presented Kakegamic’s criminal record as evidence, which has 16 convictions for violent offences and a number of probation breaches. She said all forms of rehabilitation have been attempted with minimal success.
“The decision to change rests with you, Mr. Kakegamic,” Fitzpatrick told him while accepting the submissions.
Kakegamic declined to address the court and was in tears when officers ushered him out of the courtroom after the sentence was delivered.
