Just minutes before Richard Edwin was sentenced to two concurrent life sentences for the planned and premeditated murders of two strangers in April 2022, the 43-year-old apologized to the victim’s families when asked by the judge if he wanted to address the court.
Wearing the same taupe track jacket with horizonal stripes he wore throughout his judge-alone trial, Edwin spoke loudly, staring straight ahead.
“I would just like to say that I’m sorry for all this and this was my fault. It was due to mental illness. I was having strong delusions. No person would do something like this, in their right mind, on camera. I’m sorry and would like forgiveness as well,” said Edwin.
Prior to Edwin’s short speech, the parents of Kartik Vasudev and Elijah Mahepath, the two men who were shot to death two days apart on April 7, 2022 and April 9, 2022, gave emotional victim impact statements.
Court heard Vasudev, a 21-year-old Seneca College student, came to Canada from India only three months before he was shot outside Sherbourne Station.
Vasudev’s father recalled how his son declared he wanted to go abroad to study and was considering Australia or Canada.
“I remember asking him, ‘Why not Australia?’ He smiled and said, ‘Canada — my dream country and it’s better and safer for my future studies,” Jitesh Vasudev said. “That answer stays with me even today.”
Vasudev’s father said his son was focused, determined and clear about what he wanted in life. His father described the financial hardship his murder has caused for their family.
“Just a day before his demise, I spoke to Kartik. That conversation I will carry with me forever. He said to me, ‘Papa, just give me two years. After that, you won’t need to work. I will take care of everything. I will support Parth (his brother), his education, and I will repay all the loans that you have taken,” Vasudev’s father said.
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“He was just an innocent boy simply following Google Maps on the way to his part-time job,” Pooja Vasudev told court explaining why her son was at Sherbourne Station on the day he was shot.
“I have waited for this day for the past four years,” said the mother through tears, saying that Kartik was a blessed child. “Kartik was the pillar of our family. He carried responsibility. He was the hope for our old age. It is impossible to fully express what our family has endured.”
Vasudev’s brother delivered a victim impact statement via Zoom from India. His voice cracking, Parth Vasudev explained how his older brother was his protector, mentor, best friend, hero and the person he turned to in every important moment of his life.
“The knowledge that the offender who took my brother’s life exists in the same world as my family causes me ongoing anxiety and distress,” said his brother.
Elijah Mathepath’s sister said her brother dreamed of becoming a pastor one day and he enrolled in a graduate program at the University of Toronto.
She called her brother authentic and said he lived goodness.
“There is one moment I return to often: a man tried to rob him. And Elijah looked at that man and said, ‘You don’t have to do this. Just ask me.’ He then took out the $50 he had in his pocket and gave it freely. As the man walked away, Elijah told him, ‘Jesus loves you.’ That was not a performance. That was at his core,” Hanna Mahepath wrote.
“Richard Edwin did not take a stranger from this world. He took a man of extraordinary character,” the sister wrote. She also said her brother would have forgiven Edwin, acknowledging that Edwin is a sick man.
Israel Mahepath, Elijah’s brother spoke directly to Edwin suggesting he find God while serving time.
“The Bible says everyone has sinned. You can be forgiven, Richard. My greatest desire is you don’t waste your life but pray. Ask for forgiveness. Spend you time immersed in reading the Bible,” said Israel.
In handing down her judgment Monday, Superior Court Justice Jane Kelly acknowledged that Edwin was sufferings from schizophrenia at the time of the shootings, but found he could appreciate the moral wrongfulness of his actions.
She rejected his defence of not criminally responsible (NCR) and found the murders were planned and deliberate.
After the victim impact statements were read out, Kelly then sentenced Edwin to two mandatory life sentences with a parole ineligibility period of 25 years, to be served concurrently.
Kelly acknowledged the families’ pain from the murders.
“To describe it as devastating would be an understatement. They are trying to understand such senseless deaths on our streets. These two killings have had a chilling effect on our city,” Kelly said.
“Two strangers shot in broad daylight. I don’t think it’s a stretch for all of us to think, ‘it could have been me.’ Criminal acts such as this one cause us all to fear for our safety.”
Edwin has been in custody since his arrest on April 10, 2022. He will be eligible for parole on April 10, 2047, when he’s 65 years old.
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