A man who killed an elderly couple in their north Edmonton home in 2016 will spend just under 11 years behind bars.
Edward Kyle Roberts received his sentence Thursday afternoon in an Edmonton courtroom.
A judge set the sentence at 15 years for each death and 10 years for break and enter. The sentences are to be served concurrently.
With credit for time served (four years and 15 days), the sentence amounts to nearly 11 years.
Roberts pleaded guilty in November 2018 to two counts of manslaughter in the September 2016 stabbing deaths of 93-year-old Joao Nascimento and his 81-year-old wife, Maria Nascimento.
The Crown was seeking a sentence of 20 years; the defence said between 10 and 14 years was more appropriate.
Roberts was 30 years old when he broke into a home and stole a steak knife. A neighbour saw the man acting suspiciously and called police, according to an agreed statement of facts shared in court last year.
Roberts continued wandering the neighbourhood and walked a few doors down before breaking into the Nascimentos’ home.
According to the agreed statement of facts, Roberts broke down their front door and stabbed the couple repeatedly using the stolen steak knife.
When officers arrived, they contained the home and eventually used flashbangs to scare Roberts, allowing them to get inside.
In November, court heard that when Roberts was arrested by police, he was in a psychotic mental state after consuming “intoxicating substances.” However, the Crown and defence disagreed over whether mental illness also played a role in Roberts’ violent acts.
Witnesses in the area at the time described Roberts as being “whacked out and confused.” They said he was wearing shorts and a T-shirt when it was very cold outside. They also said his eyes were wide open and looking in all directions without focusing on anything.
During an interview with police, Roberts said he “stole the knife from the house to complete the mission of killing the old people.”
Roberts was originally charged with first-degree murder in the deaths. The Nascimentos had been married for 40 years.
Watch below: An Edmonton man was charged in September 2016 with two counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of an elderly couple in north Edmonton. (Filed September 2016).
With files from Sarah Kraus, Global News.