MOOSE JAW — A Moose Jaw man who was convicted in November 2022 of contributing to another man’s death with a firearm will spend the next 30 months in jail after he breached his parole conditions.
Michael Anthony Tufano, 32, appeared in Moose Jaw Provincial Court by video from the federal Prince Albert Penitentiary on Oct. 6, where he pleaded guilty to possessing a firearm in breach of a prohibition order and careless storage of a firearm.
The Crown stayed several other charges.
As part of a joint submission, Tufano received 15 months of jail for each charge, or 30 months in total, which will run consecutively — or right after — his current sentence ends in February 2026. Since he had spent 266 days in jail since his arrest earlier this year, the court credited him with 399 days served.
Besides the sentence, Tufano is prohibited for life from owning any firearms or explosives, while he must forfeit a restricted .22 revolver that police seized.
According to previous information, the Moose Jaw Police Service arrested Tufano on Jan. 16 following an operation on the 1200 block of Vaughan Street.
Tufano was on a mandatory prohibition order after being convicted on Nov. 8, 2022, for causing death by criminal negligence with a firearm and drug-related offences. He was also prohibited from possessing any firearm or ammunition for 10 years.
Following his incarceration, Tufano was granted parole, which he subsequently breached, and a Canada-wide warrant was issued for his arrest on Jan. 2, 2025, for being unlawfully at large.
On Jan. 16, Tufano was located and arrested with the assistance of the MJPS’s tactical response team (TRT) and was taken into custody.
Following the arrest, police executed a search warrant at the residence, where they located a loaded handgun and charged Tufano with:
- Possession of a loaded and restricted firearm
- Breach of weapon prohibition (twice)
- Possession of a weapon dangerous to the public
- Careless use of a firearm
- Possession of an unauthorized firearm
During Tufano’s sentencing on Oct. 6, Crown prosecutor Monique Paquin said police found the loaded handgun in a cardboard box in the home’s basement and not locked up or stored safely. She pointed out that there was another adult and three children living there.
Continuing, Paquin said the man has 24 prior convictions, with the most “particularly concerning” charge being from the March 2022 firearm-related death.
Reading the facts from that incident, she said Tufano brought a loaded rifle into a bedroom where others were doing drugs. He gave the gun to another person, and at some point, the weapon discharged and killed a man.
“This is a very serious offence that he is entering guilty pleas to today. Sometimes careless storage charges are not something that would attract a jail sentence, but that is what counsel is asking for in this case,” Paquin continued. “As well, the firearm prohibition, which is deserving of a custodial sentence.”
The Crown prosecutor added that case-law examples for the two charges show that 18 months of jail is the range for most sentences.
Suzanne Lalonde, a Legal Aid lawyer, told Judge Brian Hendrickson that since his arrest in January, Tufano has been seeking resources to help him recover, including addiction treatment and educational programs. Furthermore, he has been laying the groundwork for when he is released, including finding a sober-living centre and taking more addiction treatment.
“It’s in the future, but it’s wise for him to think and do that now,” she said.
Judge Hendrickson accepted the joint submission — he said the firearm storage offence was “particularly bothersome” — and agreed to waive the victim fund surcharge, while he commended Tufano for finding resources to better himself.
