There were tears, hugs, and huge sighs of relief in a Calgary courtroom Wednesday afternoon. The family of Ryan Lane waited more than four years for this day, when all three people accused of killing him were found guilty.
It took a jury just over 14 hours to sift through five weeks worth of evidence presented in the case, and return three guilty verdicts on the charge of first-degree murder.
Despite maintaining their innocence throughout the trial, Sheena Cuthill, her husband Tim Rempel, and his brother, Will Rempel, were all found guilty.
“I can tell you this was a long and hard emotional trial for the family,” prosecutor Tom Buglas said.
“This verdict represents closure for the accused, probably not in the way they hoped, but for the family of the victim, Ryan Lane, and for the justice system.”
Watch below: Global’s past coverage of the Ryan Lane murder trial
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Jury deliberation begins in Ryan Lane murder trial -
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Closing arguments heard in Ryan Lane murder trial -
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Sheena Cuthill faces cross examination at Ryan Lane murder trial -
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Sheena Cuthill denies any involvement in Ryan Lane murder plot -
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Unexpected delay in Ryan Lane murder trial -
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Court hears accused’s recorded phone conversations in Ryan Lane Murder trial -
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Forensic anthropology expert testifies at Ryan Lane murder trial -
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Court shown supposed burn site in Ryan Lane murder trial -
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Jury shown accused texts in Ryan Lane murder trial -
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Court hears Will Rempel taped interview at Ryan Lane murder trial -
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Murder victim Ryan Lane’s DNA found in vehicles of 2 accused -
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Court hears Ryan Lane was depressed and missed daughter -
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Video of man cleaning truck shown at Ryan Lane trial -
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Friends of Ryan Lane testify at murder trial
Lane was last seen alive Feb. 6, 2012 after receiving a mystery call from someone asking him to meet about the custody of the daughter he fathered with Cuthill.
The Crown told the jury the killing was over custody of that little girl.
The jury was shown surveillance video of vehicles owned by Will and Tim. Later, Will was caught on tape cleaning his truck. Lane’s DNA was found in both that truck and Tim’s jeep.
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READ MORE: Calgary murder victim Ryan Lane’s DNA found in vehicles of 2 accused
Police scoured a massive area after cellphone “pings” from the accused led them to the Beiseker area.
Lane’s charred remains, along with his ring, were eventually found in a burn barrel at a gravel pit, where both Tim and Will had previously worked.
READ MORE: ‘Can I trust Will to have this done’ – texts between co-accused in Ryan Lane murder trial
The jury was also shown dozens of text messages, including one from Cuthill to her husband, giving him the “OK” just hours before Lane disappeared.
Incriminating wiretaps were played in court, including a discussion between Will and his mother, where he describes a kitchen, and tells her police wouldn’t find DNA.
READ MORE: Jury in Ryan Lane case hears wiretap evidence
In the end, the jury clearly believed the prosecution’s theory—that the trio plotted and carried out his murder.
“This was one of the most significant CPS investigations that I’m aware of. It was a significant investigation, a significant number of man hours in the search for Ryan Lane’s remains were invested, a number of investigative techniques were used,” Buglas said.
Cuthill and the Rempel brothers all face an automatic life sentence with no chance of parole for 25 years.
“I can only assume as he now faces a sentence of life in prison with no possibility of parole for 25 years he’s feeling pretty distraught,” Tim Rempel’s lawyer, Allan Fay, said outside of court.
Tim’s defence is already considering an appeal, referring to a letter allegedly written by Will just months ago, where he takes full blame for the killing.
READ MORE: ‘Ultimately he ended up dead’ – jailhouse letter allegedly from Will to Tim Rempel
That letter was ruled unreliable by the judge and never seen by the jury.
“I would have liked them to have that letter, but of course the judge ruled it inadmissable and that’s unfortunate,” Fay said.
Tim and Will Rempel were also found guilty of kidnapping in the case.
Lane’s family declined to speak until after they’ve had a chance to read their victim impact statements at the sentencing hearing Friday morning, but it’s clear this is the first step towards any kind of closure in the case.
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