A 21-year-old Montreal man was sentenced to 13-and-a-half-years in prison following an attempted suicide that ended-up costing the life of another man.
On Dec. 3, 2022, a then-19-year-old Kevin Turpin felt suicidal. He even told friends he wanted to end his life by driving at high speed on the road and crashing into a tree.
Surveillance videos presented in court shows Turpin getting into his car and accelerating to nearly 180 km/h in a 50 km/h zone on Henri-Bourassa Boulevard.
As he approached a red light at 6th Avenue, he rear-ended an Uber driven by 38-year-old Allen Mapfuno. The impact was so violent that Mapfuno’s car burst into flames, killing him instantly.
Turpin escaped with minor injuries and told paramedics his intention was to kill himself.
Victim’s family flies in from Zimbabwe for sentencing
He was subsequently charged with murder, but on the eve of his trial, the young man, now 21, opted to plead guilty to a lesser charge of manslaughter.
Mapfumo’s mother and brother flew in from Zimbabwe to testify at the sentencing hearing about how Turpin’s actions devastated their lives. He had been the primary financial support for his family back home.
The prosecution and defence agreed on a 13-and-a-half-year sentence.
“He qualified as a near murder. The infraction that was committed, the fact that Mr. Turpin was speeding at almost 180 km/h in a 50 km/h zone,” prosecutor Pierre-Oliver Bolduc told reporters outside the courtroom.
A pre-sentencing report showed that Turpin was unable to get easy access to mental health support. He expressed his suicidal thoughts to his doctor, who referred him to a psychologist. However, Turpin couldn’t afford the sessions.
Ultimately, Justice Mario Longpre said Turpin was responsible for his actions.
“Any distress and any psychological distress are not an excuse for putting in danger the life of a citizen. So, at the end of the day, that is why the sentence is in the higher range of sentences in the similar cases,” added the prosecutor.
The defence had argued Turpin didn’t intend to kill anyone but himself.
“It was a reduced infraction of manslaughter, which reflects what we believe, and the intent of our client, which did not voluntarily cause the death of Mr. Mapfumo,” said defence lawyer Kavin Morass.
“He’s expressed his remorse is a truly great remorse with what happened and the consequences.”
With time served awaiting trial, Turpin now has 10 years left to serve before he can ask for parole.
