'Everybody deserves a second chance': Yorkton murder victim's sister says she forgave killers
The sister of a Yorkton man who was murdered in 2018 said she has forgiven the four people connected to his death.
Investigators believe 25-year-old Colin Robert Focht was killed in September 2018. His remains were found the following spring in a rural area near Yorkton.
Police believe four people were involved in the murder.
“I actually did forgive them. I think everybody deserves a second chance,” Mary Anne Focht, Colin’s sister, said in an interview.
Last week, 26-year-old Jordan Ironstand was sentenced to life in prison for the death of Colin Focht after pleading guilty to second-degree murder. Taiya Hudy, 22, served two years in prison for accessory to murder.
Two others were youths at the time of the offence. One has served time while the other is awaiting sentencing.
Ironstand will be eligible for parole in 12 years.
“It was a joint submission, so this is what Jordan wanted,” Ironstand’s defense attorney Aleida Oberholzer said.
Oberholzer said pleading guilty was Ironstand’s first step in his healing path.
“He needs to behave in custody, he needs to make the right steps to show that he can get out on parole and that he is rehabilitative,” she added.
‘YOU CAN NEVER GO BACK’
Mary Anne said she was traumatized during Colin’s cremation.
“When I saw it being deformed it felt like he was screaming,” she said.
"I’ll never forget April 4th when they found his body finally after the many months. This whole thing has changed Mary Anne and I and the other sisters lives in different ways,” Focht family Spokesperson Sheila Webster said.
“You can never go back to who you were before.”
Mary Anne and Webster have written four separate victim impact statements as part of the court proceedings.
“Mary Anne and I actually wrote each victim impact statement differently, because it’s different for each person and how their part in the murder was, and also knowing their backgrounds and what kind of support they did or did not have through their life,” Webster said.
“I felt really upset, and I just wanted to get the emotions through to the perpetrators, that they would be able to realize the mistake they did,” said Mary Anne.
Both Mary Anne and Webster have been open-minded to the process.
“If you don’t forgive you’re held hostage to the crime, and that you’ll never have peace in your life” Webster said.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
DEVELOPING Man sets self on fire outside New York court where Trump trial underway
A man set himself on fire on Friday outside the New York courthouse where Donald Trump's historic hush-money trial was taking place as jury selection wrapped up, but officials said he did not appear to have been targeting Trump.
BREAKING Sask. father found guilty of withholding daughter to prevent her from getting COVID-19 vaccine
Michael Gordon Jackson, a Saskatchewan man accused of abducting his daughter to prevent her from getting a COVID-19 vaccine, has been found guilty for contravention of a custody order.
She set out to find a husband in a year. Then she matched with a guy on a dating app on the other side of the world
Scottish comedian Samantha Hannah was working on a comedy show about finding a husband when Toby Hunter came into her life. What happened next surprised them both.
Mandisa, Grammy award-winning 'American Idol' alum, dead at 47
Soulful gospel artist Mandisa, a Grammy-winning singer who got her start as a contestant on 'American Idol' in 2006, has died, according to a statement on her verified social media. She was 47.
'It could be catastrophic': Woman says natural supplement contained hidden painkiller drug
A Manitoba woman thought she found a miracle natural supplement, but said a hidden ingredient wreaked havoc on her health.
Young people 'tortured' if stolen vehicle operations fail, Montreal police tell MPs
One day after a Montreal police officer fired gunshots at a suspect in a stolen vehicle, senior officers were telling parliamentarians that organized crime groups are recruiting people as young as 15 in the city to steal cars so that they can be shipped overseas.
The Body Shop Canada explores sale as demand outpaces inventory: court filing
The Body Shop Canada is exploring a sale as it struggles to get its hands on enough inventory to keep up with "robust" sales after announcing it would file for creditor protection and close 33 stores.
Vicious attack on a dog ends with charges for northern Ont. suspect
Police in Sault Ste. Marie charged a 22-year-old man with animal cruelty following an attack on a dog Thursday morning.
On federal budget, Macklem says 'fiscal track has not changed significantly'
Bank of Canada governor Tiff Macklem says Canada's fiscal position has 'not changed significantly' following the release of the federal government's budget.