A man who was involved in the 2019 death of a Saskatoon father has been sentenced to five years in prison.
Devin Wesaquate entered a guilty plea for manslaughter Wednesday and embraced members of his family before sheriffs escorted him out of the courtroom.
The 27-year-old is the first of four to see the end of his court proceedings regarding the death of Kevin Nataucappo.
Justice Gerald Allbright placed the facts of the sentencing hearing under a publication ban because the three others charged in Nataucappo’s death are set to stand trial later this month.
The courtroom held only a handful of people including Wesaquate’s family and several members of the media.
Wesaquate was being held in custody, which leaves him with nearly three years left to serve behind bars.
Nataucappo’s loss is still being felt by his family.
“(His mother) was very upset and not able to provide a victim impact statement. Considering that her son was killed, that doesn’t surprise me,” Crown prosecutor Melodi Kujawa said.
Wesaquate told the court he is taking responsibility for his actions.
“I don’t see the victim’s family here. I just wanted to let them know I’m taking responsibility for this charge. If I could change what I did, I would,” he said before the judge submitted the sentence.
“He’s hopeful for the future. You heard in court he expressed his regrets and his remorse to the victim’s family as well,” defence lawyer Lisa Watson told reporters outside the courthouse.
The three other men accused in the death — Mohamad Al-Zawahreh, Darrell Dustyhorn and Destin Mosquito — are set for trial on March 15.
Nataucappo died in September 2019 after an altercation at a home on Howell Avenue. It was the city’s 13th homicide of the year.
Eventually, 2019 broke the record for the number of homicides that took place in Saskatoon with 16.