An Edmonton senior who killed his estranged son-in-law two years ago will spend at least 10 years in prison before he is eligible for parole.
Roberto Robles, 75, learned his fate in an Edmonton courtroom on Friday morning, after being found guilty in June of second-degree murder.
On June 17, 2016, Robles’ son-in-law, Armando Cosmea-Aspillaga, 38, was found dead in the Riverbend house he jointly owned with his estranged wife. Cosmea-Aspillaga was shot and stabbed several times.
During the trial, court heard Cosmea-Aspillaga met his wife at a wedding in Cuba in 2009. The couple began a relationship and were married in late 2010.
Less than a year later, Cosmea-Aspillaga — known to friends and family as Mandy — immigrated to Edmonton. In 2013, the couple celebrated the birth of their daughter.
The Crown told the court the relationship crumbled; they had separated but continued to live in the same home. They were in the process of sorting out shared parenting times.
On the day of the murder, Robles and his wife went to the couple’s home to look after their granddaughter, while Cosmea-Aspillaga went to work and Flavia Robles headed to Calgary.
Cosmea-Aspillaga was supposed to attend a party after his day of work as a labourer in Nisku. He planned to head home and change first.
The jury accepted the Crown’s theory that Robles ambushed his son-in-law when he arrived home. Cosmea-Aspillaga was later found to have five pellet gun wounds, including in his forehead and behind his ear. He had also been stabbed multiple times.
The victim’s mother flew to Edmonton from Cuba to be in the courtroom when Robles was sentenced. She left the courthouse quite disappointed with the parole ineligibility period, hoping it would be longer. She said her life has been shattered.
“I have very deep pain,” Georgina Aspillaga said through the help of an interpreter. “I thought the sentence was going to be greater.”
A second-degree murder conviction carries an automatic life sentence with no chance of parole for at least 10 years, but it can range up to 25 years.
Robles will be at least 85 before he has a chance of being released. The judge noted that Robles is suffering health issues and has early signs of dementia.
“I do accept he is truly sorry,” Justice Dawn Pentelechuk said Friday.
However, she continued to say: “Through Mr. Robles’ actions, two families are shattered.”
The judge will recommend that Robles serve his time in Drumheller, which is close to his family.
The Crown had asked that Robles not be eligible for parole for at least 10 years, but less than 15 years.
Robles’ defence lawyer asked that his client be eligible for parole after 10 years behind bars.
Watch below: Ongoing Global News coverage of Armando Cosmea-Aspillaga’s death and Roberto Robles’ trial
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