A man who killed a woman and wounded six other people in a mass stabbing at a library in North Vancouver, B.C., has received a life sentence with no chance of parole for 15 years.
Yannick Bandaogo, 30, pleaded guilty on May 29 to one count of second-degree murder and six counts of attempted murder over the March 2021 attack in and around the public library in Lynn Valley.
Bandaogo, who did not know the victims, has not explained his motives to the court in New Westminster, although defense lawyer Georges Rivard has said his client “accepted his responsibility.”
Prosecutor Dan Loucks said outside court on Thursday that he hopes the sentencing brings some closure for victims, families and the community, but it may never be known what motivated Bandaogo.
Bandaogo apologized to each of his victims in a July hearing, as he described his “story of self-destruction,” involving a troubled childhood and heavy drug use before the attack
Second-degree murder carries a mandatory life term, with a non-parole period of 10 to 25 years, and the defence and prosecution had made a joint submission to Justice Geoffrey R.J. Gaul recommending the 15-year non-parole period.
The court earlier heard impact statements from victims and their relatives, including the mother of the woman who was killed, who said the death of her “gentle” and “fearless” daughter shattered the family.
Neither the murdered woman nor her relatives can be named because of a publication ban.
Another victim, Emma Henderson, who was stabbed in the face, told the court in July that she suffered a deviated septum and other severe injuries to her nose and mouth, and suffered constant pain and anxiety from the incident.
“I remember asking, ‘What kind of monster would go around stabbing people in a library?’ No one could give me an answer,” she said
Another victim, Susanne Till, lost an eye in the attack and said in July she suffers frequent headaches.
She told the court that equally traumatizing was the effect on her three children, one of whom was at the scene of the attack and rode in the ambulance with her to hospital while holding her blood-covered cellphone.
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