Suspect's lawyer to argue his client was too mentally ill to be held criminally responsible
A racial slur thrown at one McDonald’s worker led to him killing his co-worker back in 2022, an Alberta court heard on Monday.
On July 4, 2022, Moroccan Solaimane Elbettah killed co-worker Joshua Burns inside the fastfood restaurant they were both working in in the town of Sundre, Calgary Court of King’s Bench Justice Glen Poelman head, according to the National Post.
While CCTV did not capture the incident, it showed Elbettah’s behaviour prior to the incident, said Crown prosecutor Vince Pingitore.
Just before midnight on July 3 that year, Elbettah and Burns went outside the restaurant to have a cigarette. When they returned inside the restaurant, Elbettah grabbed two yellow milk crates and placed them in the drive-through lane to close it down, according to the report.
Elbettah then walked across the street to his residence in a Sundre motel where he retrieved a machete and placed it in a black bag.
“The accused is depicted in the manager’s office with the machete,” Pingitore said, according to the National Post. “The accused caused the deceased’s death using the machete.”
Burns suffered injuries to the neck. The attack left a "large, deep wound to the neck" that measured about 28 centimetres (11 inches), CBC reported, citing the agreed statement of facts.
When RCMP arrived, they found Bruns “in a large pool of blood,” according to the National Post.
It all started with a racial slur, the court heard.
After killing Bruns, Elbettah sent a text to one of his supervisors, Richelle Waldner, according to Pingitore.
According to both reports, the text message read: “Hi, Richelle, there was a murder at the restaurant. Don’t walk in by yourself.”
“He was insulting me and he was thinking he is better than me because he is white.”
After the incident, Elbettah called 911 himself from a nearby field, noted CBC.
"I want to turn myself in," Elbettah told the 911 operator. "I killed someone."
Suspect’s mental state
Pingitore claimed he will argue that Elbettah was too mentally ill at the time he killed Burns to be found criminally responsible for his murder, according to the National Post report.
He also expects Pawel Milczarek, defence counsel, to present psychiatric evidence regarding Elbettah ’s mental state at the time of the killing.
Crown’s psychiatrist who assessed Elbettah has a medical issue, and he will ask Poelman to order another assessment for the prosecution by Dr. George Duska, said Pingitore.
Because of this, the hearing will have to be delayed while Duska prepares a new report, said the Crown prosecutor.
Elbettah, 28, is charged with first-degree murder. He remains in custody pending the outcome of the case.
