CRIME-Fatal-Firebombing
code:6
INDEX: Justice
HL:Parole denied for Calgary man convicted in fatal firebombing in 2004
THE CANADIAN PRESS
CALGARY — The Parole Board of Canada has denied an application for day parole and full parole by a man found guilty of paying two crack addicts $60 each to firebomb a home, which ended up killing two young children.
Calgary radio station CHQR says it learned of the ruling after obtaining documents pertaining to the case.
After the firebombing in late 2004, Abdul Aziz Ellahib was found guilty of manslaughter and arson charges and was sentenced to 20 years behind bars.
He took his case to the Alberta Court of Appeal, but in 2008, his appeal was denied.
Ellahib has argued he only hired the men to intimidate a woman who he believed had spread rumours of infidelity about his wife.
The parole board says Ellahib’s stance hasn’t changed.
The board admits Ellahib, 51, has made some progress when it comes to programming in custody, but it hasn’t been enough to allow for any new freedoms.
“It is the board’s opinion that you will present an undue risk to society if released on day parole or full parole and that your release will not contribute to the protection of society by facilitating your reintegration into society as a law-abiding citizen,” the decision read.
A six-year-old boy and his four-year-old sister died in the blaze while their mother was injured while jumping from the second floor of the home.
Michael Sheets and Fernum Kezar eventually pleaded guilty to manslaughter and received 15 and 16-year jail sentences.
In 2015, Sheets escaped from custody while on an escorted absence from a correctional facility on Vancouver Island. He was re-arrested a short time later.
(CHQR)