Refugee who 'embraced' Canada fatally shot by stranger, judge hears as killer pleads guilty

A Calgary man who shot into a crowded bar, killing a new-to-Canada refugee pleaded guilty to manslaughter on Tuesday and was handed an eight-year prison sentence.

Originally charged with second-degree murder, Yosief Daniel Hagos, 25, pleaded guilty to the lesser offence after negotiations between prosecutor Melissa Bond and defence lawyer Shamsher Kothari.

Samuel Welday Haile, 24, was fatally shot in the early morning hours of Dec. 25, 2022, at Bella's Bar in the city's southeast. 

Haile survived seven years in an Ethiopian refugee camp before his aunt — who spent tens of thousands of dollars and years fighting — was able to bring her nephew to Canada in late 2021.

In a victim impact statement, Haile's aunt described him as a man who "did not take his new life in Canada for granted."

"He embraced every opportunity Canada had to offer," she wrote.

In the 13-months he lived in Calgary, Haile worked three jobs, learned to drive, volunteered in his community and played the kirar, a traditional instrument.

He also supported fellow refugees emotionally and financially. Haile's aunt told the court that he had been secretly sharing the money that had been sent to him when he was at a refugee camp with other refugees.

"He was not just a young man trying to build a better life for himself, he was a source of hope and kindness to everyone around him," wrote the aunt. 

On Tuesday, dozens of the victim's friends, family and community members packed into two courtrooms to witness Hagos's plea. 

Court of King's Bench Justice David Labrenz accepted a joint recommendation from Bond and Kothari for an eight-year prison sentence. 

An agreed statement of facts detailing the crime was read into the record by Bond, the prosecutor. 

Court heard that Hagos was on bail at the time of the shooting and was under 24-hour house arrest. He was required to wear a GPS ankle monitoring device and was banned from possessing firearms. 

Instead, he showed up with a loaded gun to a private party at Bella's Restaurant and Bar in Forest Lawn.