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Roger Bilodeau, the man who set off a high-speed chase that ended in the shooting deaths of two Métis-Cree hunters on a rural road northeast of Edmonton, was sentenced to 10 years in prison Friday.

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But Court of Queen’s Bench Justice Eric Macklin gave Bilodeau credit for just over 1,600 days served at the Edmonton detention centre, counting extra time due to harsher detention conditions during the COVID-19 pandemic. In the end, Bilodeau will serve about five and a half years in prison. Sign up to receive daily news headlines from the Edmonton Journal, a division of Postmedia Network Inc. By clicking the subscribe button you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the unsubscribe link at the bottom of our emails. Postmedia Network Inc. | 365 Bloor Street East, Toronto, Ontario, M4W 3L4 | 416-383-2300

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The sentence came after the family of Jacob Sansom and Maurice (Morris) Cardinal gave victim impact statements, many bringing photos of the two men who were killed on March 27, 2020. Roger Bilodeau was convicted this year of involuntary manslaughter in their deaths, while his son Anthony Bilodeau was found guilty by a jury of second-degree murder and involuntary manslaughter in the murders of Cardinal and Sansom, respectively. The younger Bilodeau’s sentencing hearing is scheduled to begin Nov. 17.

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Sansom’s younger sister, Gina Sansom, said she brought photos to file in court because she wanted to make sure the Bilodeaus saw the fullness of her family and the love, kindness and joy they had. Jake Sansom, 39, and his uncle Morris Cardinal, 57, were found dead of gunshot wounds Saturday morning on a rural road near Glendon. Photo from the provided On the day they were killed, Sansom, 39, and his uncle Cardinal, 57, had been moose hunting near Glendon. A little after nightfall, they briefly entered Roger Bilodeau’s street entrance. At trial, Bilodeau and his son Joseph — just 16 at the time — said they were concerned the truck’s occupants were thieves. They chased the vehicle, reaching speeds of 152 km/h, and Roger Bilodeau called his eldest son Anthony, who lived on a nearby farm, and told him to bring a gun. He later told an RCMP officer that he believed “these sons of dogs are coming to steal or do something.”

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Roger Bilodeau pulled in front of the men’s pick-up and forced it to slow, eventually stopping. Then, after Anthony arrived, Crown prosecutors said video surveillance shows less than 30 seconds passed before he shot Sansom once in the chest, followed by three shots at Cardinal, one of which struck him in the back. Bilodeau claimed Cardinal was armed, but the firearm police found in Cardinal’s truck the next day was unloaded and lying in the back seat. The Bilodeaus left the scene of the shooting without calling police or an ambulance. Anthony Bilodeau later destroyed the gun used in the shooting and lied to investigators about having a rifle of that caliber. At times Thursday, Gina Sansom addressed the Bilodeaus directly.

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“You are thieves of our happiness and joys. You are thieves of our promised future and memories. You were the only thieves present that night, and in this courtroom today,” he said. “You stole so much from us in just a few moments.” The family described how Sansom and Cardinal were custodians of knowledge about their Métis and Cree cultural heritage and how the loss of both at the same time had devastating ripples through generations of their family. They said they are haunted by thoughts of Sansom and Cardinal, whom they knew as protectors and providers, left for dead in the street. The Metis Nation of Alberta called the killings “a stark illustration of the discrimination and contempt many of our citizens experience, especially in this part of the province.”

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A frame from Roger Bilodeau’s interview with the RCMP on March 31, 2020, following the deaths of Jacob Sansom and his uncle Maurice Cardinal. Bilodeau, left, and his son Anthony Bilodeau are charged with second-degree murder in their deaths. At right is RCMP Sgt. Christian Reister. Photo from the provided

“Now that’s justification”

During the trial this year, the defense argued that the Bilodeaus were on a rampage and acted in self-defense because of an increase in rural property crime – although the Crown later revealed that neither Roger nor Anthony had ever called the police to report a burglary . The Bilodeaus alleged that when the vehicles stopped, Sansom smashed the passenger side window with his fist and tried to grab Joseph while yelling to “fleet” them. Macklin said in his ruling Friday that Roger Bilodeau reached an “unfounded conclusion” that Cardinal and Sansom did something “bad” and the two hunters “must have developed a great deal of fear” while being pursued. Whatever happened during the crash after the cars stopped, Macklin added, the circumstances suggest Sansom was only acting in self-defense.

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Sarah Sansom, wife of Jacob Sansom, speaks outside court, Friday, August 27, 2022. Photo: GREG SOUTHAM/POSTMEDIA Sansom’s wife, Sarah Sansom, said afterward that those words mean more than the length of the prison sentence. “We were trying to tell the world that the boys were innocent and we know that. And now it’s vindication. They were innocent victims.” Roger Bilodeau spoke briefly in court, sometimes in tears, before the sentencing decision. “I had no intention of harming anyone and I am truly sorry for my actions and the difficulties I have caused,” he said. “I pray for these two lost souls all the time and for their family.” At the end of the court proceedings, family members said it was the first expression of remorse they had seen, but bristled at the men described as “losers”. “Our boys were not lost souls,” said Irene Forsyth, a relative of Sansom and Cardinal who grew up with both as if they were her brothers. “If anyone was a lost soul, it was certainly (Roger Bilodeau) and his son who did what they did.” — With files from Jonny Wakefield [email protected] @meksmith

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