Son's slaying ‘brought me to my knees'

Winnipeg Free Press

29-04-2025

The senseless slaying of a 31-year-old father of two, who was attacked by two strangers as he rode his bicycle over the Slaw Rebchuk bridge, is the kind of crime that strikes fear in the hearts of Winnipeggers, a judge said Monday.
Joseph Evans, 22, pleaded guilty to manslaughter for his part in the May 2022 stabbing death of Richard Contois.
'Events like this cause us all to be fearful and suspicious of one another,' Court of King's Bench Justice Theodor Bock said before sentencing Evans to 14 years in prison.
'It diminishes us all and deprives us of the kind of life we want for ourselves and each other – a life that ought to include being able to walk or cycle on the streets of Winnipeg on a springtime evening.'
Court heard Contois was riding southbound on the bridge at approximately 10:20 p.m. when he crossed paths with Evans and a 17-year-old male co-accused.
There were no witnesses to the ensuing 'altercation' in which Evans was stabbed 12 times in his face, neck, chest and back, Crown attorney Nick Reeves told court, reading from an agreed statement of facts.
'Mr. Evans admits he was responsible for a number of these injuries,' Reeves said.
Police officers on patrol came across Contois and he was taken to hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Surveillance video captured the two suspects walking onto the bridge together and then off the bridge with Contois's bicycle.
Police reviewed additional surveillance that showed them arriving at a Stella Walk residence 20 minutes later, each of them visibly in possession of a knife, Reeves said.
RCMP arrested Evans nearly a month later in his home community of Norway House.
Questioned by police, Evans said he was present for the attack, but did not admit to stabbing Contois.
Evans was originally charged with second-degree murder but in a plea bargain admitted to the lesser offence of manslaughter.
Reeves said an autopsy could not confirm more than one knife was used to kill Contois, leaving it open for the defence to argue it was only the youth accused who had stabbed Contois. As well, a fanny pack belonging to Evans, which was seized by police and believed to have held a knife used to stab Contois, contained no DNA linking Evans to the crime.
'Both Mr. Evans and the prosecution had compelling evidence that could lead to an acquittal or a conviction for second-degree murder,' Reeves said.
'The prosecution did not want to risk an acquittal and have Mr. Evans not held responsible for the murder of Mr. Contois. Mr. Evans did not want to risk being convicted of second-degree murder and receiving a life sentence.'
Contois's death 'has literally brought me to my knees,' his father told court in a tear-filled victim impact statement.
'You can't put a price on the loss of my son,' Richard Fillion said. 'We were each other's greatest support.'
Court heard Evans had been abandoned by his parents when he was an infant and was raised by his grandparents. As a child, he suffered abuse and neglect. As a youth, he abused substances. He has little schooling and no work history.
Defence lawyer Saul Simmonds said Evans shows the signs of someone who has fetal alcohol spectrum disorder, but no formal diagnosis has been made.
'I am particularly struck by the lack of social supports that seem to be provided to Mr. Evans during his short life,' Bock said. 'It seems easy now to predict that without help and support, Mr. Evans would be at great risk of doing harm to himself or others.'
Evans apologized in court to Contois's family, which Bock said he accepted as a genuine sign of remorse.
Evans received credit for time served, reducing his remaining sentence to just under 10 years.
Charges against the youth co-accused were stayed by the Crown in 2023.
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Dean PritchardCourts reporter
Dean Pritchard is courts reporter for the Free Press. He has covered the justice system since 1999, working for the Brandon Sun and Winnipeg Sun before joining the Free Press in 2019. Read more about Dean.
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