Two men accused in a deadly 2021 shooting at the Duggan Community Hall in south Edmonton were found guilty of second-degree murder. Both men were also found guilty of possessing a loaded restricted firearm.
Abdullahi Yalahow and Christopher Wilson were each charged with second-degree murder. They both pleaded not guilty.
The men had elected trial by jury. After nearly four weeks – the jury was charged and sequestered Thursday afternoon, taking less than 24 hours to deliberate.
Yalahow also pleaded not guilty to charges of intentionally discharging a firearm and unlawfully having a loaded, prohibited or restricted firearm. Wilson also pleaded not guilty to unlawfully having a loaded, prohibited or restricted firearm.
The jury returned with two guilty verdicts early Friday morning. Abdullahi Yalahow was also found guilty of discharging a firearm in a public place.
Just after 4 a.m. on Aug. 29, 2021, Hamza Mohamed was fatally shot during a party at the Duggan Community Hall near 37th Avenue and 106th Street.
A third man has been charged with manslaughter and is scheduled for trial in June 2024. He’s not part of this trial, however.
Six other people, including Yalahow, were also shot and injured in the hail of gunfire.
Over the course of the trial, the jury saw graphic surveillance footage from the hall party and heard from guests who ran for their lives or hid when multiple shots rang out.
In closing arguments last week,
Yalahow’s defence lawyer Zachary Al-Khatib alleged his client could have been acting in self defense.
Al-Khatib said the jury should acquit his client of the murder charge, and instead find him guilty of firearms offences, for bringing a loaded gun to the hall party that night.
Wilson’s defence lawyer, Dino Bottos, admitted his client was caught red-handed on surveillance video.
“Who was the shooter? Kristopher Wilson. Who was the killer? Kristopher Wilson,” Bottos said.
“But what was in his mind? Why did he act the way he did? Why did he shoot?”
Bottos suggested his client was too intoxicated — both by marijuana and alcohol — to have properly known what he was doing.
“He is unable to help us in terms of his own subjective thought process at the time,” Bottos said.
“His memory goes black. His memory does not return to him until after his arrest at the police station.”
A date for sentencing has not yet been set.
Mohamed’s sister, who sat through nearly the entire four week trial, told Global News she was happy with the jury’s decision.