Canada Man who stabbed and killed Belgian tourist sentenced to life in prison

The man who stabbed and killed a Belgian tourist last summer has been sentenced to life in prison and will not be eligible for parole for 23 years.

© Provided by Canadian Broadcasting Corporation Sean McKenzie (left) has been sentenced to life in prison for the second-degree murder of Belgian tourist Amelie Sakkalis, right, in 2018.

Amelie Sakkalis' body was found on Aug. 22, 2018 north of Boston Bar, B.C. The 28-year-old woman had been hitchhiking from Penticton to Vancouver.

In September, Sean McKenzie, 27, pleaded guilty to her second-degree murder.

In addition to his prison sentence, he will be registered as a sex offender for life and faces a lifetime firearms prohibition.

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A 25-year-old man who stabbed his neighbor to death in Norwalk in 2012 was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole on Wednesday He pled guilty and admitted the killing was committed during a burglary, officials said. He fled to Guatemala after the murder, where he remained

A German man who stabbed to death a nine-year-old boy, bragged about it online and then killed another man while on the run was sentenced to life in Hesse had lured the boy from a nearby family home, in the western town of Herne, into his basement and stabbed him 52 times with a folding knife

An attack of 'extreme violence"

During the sentencing hearing Tuesday in B.C. Supreme Court in New Westminster, the Crown, in what it called an act of "extreme violence" revealed McKenzie had bound Sakkalis, stripped her naked, sexually assaulted her and stabbed her 42 times.

Then he called 911 pretending to be the victim.

McKenzie's lawyer, Troy Anderson, told the court his client can't say why he murdered Sakkalis and recognizes that will likely ruin his hopes for parole. Anderson says McKenzie can't articulate the deep remorse he feels but he is willing to accept responsibility and pay the price for his crime.

"He has taken from her family someone very precious and he acknowledges that and knows he cannot make it right," Anderson said. "He offers his wholehearted and heartfelt apology … to those whose lives were ruined that day.,"

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A German court on Friday sentenced to life in prison a 25-year-old man who murdered his grandmother before killing two police officers In the triple murder a year ago, the man first stabbed to death his 79-year-old grandmother while under the influence of drugs, at Müllrose, a small town

Before a judge sentenced her to life in prison without the possibility of parole for fatally stabbing two young children she had cared for, the former nanny, Yoselyn Ortega, spoke in open court for the first time since the trial began and begged for forgiveness.

McKenzie had no previous criminal record and was working as a cook.

Before retiring to consider the sentence, B.C. Supreme Court Justice Martha Devlin offered him an opportunity to speak.

McKenize rose from his chair.

"It's not a lack of want," he said. "I think my counsel has covered it. It's difficult to even get these words out. The actual saying of these things. But I appreciate the chance."

Sakkalis dreamed of exploring Canada, says family

Since the day her family heard the news of her death, Sakkalis' sister says she is constantly anxious and has trouble sleeping at night.

"Family is very important to me," she told the court through tears during her victim impact statement. "My fiancé is an only child. Now, I am as well."

Six members of the Sakkalis family travelled from Belgium to be in court. Sakkalis's mother spoke about how her daughter dreamed of exploring Canada.

She said every time her phone vibrates, she still thinks it might be her daughter.

"Every night when I go to sleep I kiss a little box that holds some of her ashes," she said.