A man has pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in the killing of an innocent couple outside Cranbrook 15 years ago in what was intended to be a targeted hit against a rival gang member.
In a Vancouver courtroom, Colin Correia pleaded down to two counts of second-degree murder, after entering not-guilty pleas to first-degree murder, in the 2010 deaths of Leanne MacFarlane and Jeffrey Taylor at a rural residence east of Cranbrook.
Doug Mahon, a rival gang member, was the intended target of the hit and a previous resident of the home who had moved out months before the killings.
Crown and defence counsel provided a joint submission on an agreed statement of facts, victim impact statements, and sentencing principles in front of Justice Michael Tammen on Feb. 6.
A second-degree murder charge carries a life sentence of 25 years, while the joint Crown and defence submission recommends eligibility for parole in 14 years. Factoring in time served in pre-trial custody since his arrest in 2018 and subsequent acquittal in 2022, which was successfully appealed by the Crown, that would mean Correia would be eligible for parole in just under 10 years 鈥� December 2034.
Tammen is expected to deliver a sentencing decision on Friday, Feb. 7.
In 2010, MacFarlane and Taylor were engaged and had just moved to Cranbrook from Salmon Arm, as they were in the process of opening up a cellphone store with a life of promise and opportunity ahead of them.
According to the agreed statement of facts, the murders were a tragic case of mistaken identity. Both MacFarlane and Taylor were shot inside their home, after two masked individuals kicked down the door on the morning of May 29, 2010.
Mahon was arrested at that same location by police following a shooting at the Sam Steele Hotel in Cranbrook seven months prior.
In 2013, Correia and Lorne Carry were convicted of conspiracy to commit murder against Mahon, allegedly in retaliation for the shooting. A third man, Lonnie Adams, was acquitted of the conspiracy charge, however, all three were also convicted of counselling to commit murder as part of the same trial proceedings.
Family members present at the hearing spoke about the devastating impacts the deaths of their loved ones had on their lives.
In a statement read out in court a family member, who was living in the adjoining duplex with her son, wrote about confronting one of the gunmen and hiding in a bedroom.
"When that person came in, I closed my eyes and thought I was going to die. What an awful feeling. He walked away and now I was praying he wouldn't go in my son's bedroom."
Wendy Holland, MacFarlane's sister, said she has been living with emotions of loss, fear, stress, anxiety and "the most ultimate pain" since that day.
"My sweet sister was gone. I'll never see her again. I won't be able to hear her beautiful laugh or see her beautiful smile. She was such a gem. I loved her kindness, her beautiful way of reasoning, her love for animals, her humour and her way of always forgiving.
"I consider myself lucky to still be able to see her smile and hear her wonderful laugh. To have known her is to have loved her. I miss her every single day and struggle very hard with that as you took that away from me."
Randi Hill, MacFarlane's daughter, described the horrific aftermath of the shooting.
"I had to clean my own mother鈥檚 blood off the floor, from where you left her to die,鈥� Hill said.
During submissions from defence counsel, the court heard how Correia had since left his criminal lifestyle shortly after being convicted of the conspiracy to commit murder charge.
He showed positive behaviour changes while incarcerated and eventually completed his high school diploma.
Various family members, employers and friends wrote letters attesting to Correia's rehabilitation, according to defence counsel.
Correia himself addressed the court, apologizing for the "shattering heartbreak" caused by his actions.
鈥淣ot a day goes by where I don鈥檛 think about my actions and the pain I have caused," Correia said. "Please let this guilty plea help to show that I want to move on and give some closure to all of your suffering.鈥�
Eight years after the murders, Correia was arrested in Edmonton while on parole as part of serving a 12-year sentence that followed the conspiracy conviction.
Over two days, he allegedly gave a "highly inculpatory" account of the events on May 29, 2010 to police interviewers, while also asking for immunity and Crown protection.
In terms of police interviewing techniques, RCMP attempted to make Correia uncomfortable on the first session by keeping him awake and without a bed until late in the evening.
Those efforts later changed to a more conciliatory approach, including restaurant food for meals and arranging a visit with his partner.
However, the crux of the "police trickery" conclusion 鈥� which the original trial judge relied on when forming the eventual ruling to acquit 鈥� involved police inviting Correia to talk about the conspiracy offence as opposed to the murders, since he had already been charged and convicted of the conspiracy offence and couldn't be prosecuted for that same offence.
Those statements were excluded from the first trial following an evidence admissibility ruling by the original trial judge, and he was acquitted in 2022 alongside Sheldon Hunter.
Those statements to police were a key element of the Crown's successful appeal of Correia's acquittal to the Court of Appeal.
The appeal court overturned the acquittal on Oct. 24, 2024, and ordered a new trial. Shortly after, Correia was arrested and talks between counsel began, culminating in the second-degree murder guilty plea.
