SASKATOON — Two men have been found not guilty of second-degree murder but convicted of manslaughter in the 2022 stabbing death of James Swift on a remote grid road outside of Saskatoon.
The verdict for Ashtin Ritzand and Colton Lischka hinged on a finding from the judge that the Crown’s star witness, Virginia Belhumeur, who survived the attack, was unable to reliably distinguish which man was the main assailant.
“I conclude she could not tell them apart,” said Justice Michael. D. Tochor in his Nov. 5 written decision. “When testifying she often referred to 'they' when speaking about who was involved. I conclude she does not know which of the accused stabbed Mr. Swift and which of the accused stabbed her. However, it is undisputed that both she and Mr. Swift were stabbed. It is also undisputed that Mr. [Anthony] Burley, Mr. Ritzand, and Mr. Lischka were there with them at the scene.”
Justice Tochor said, “In fairness to Ms. Belhumeur, she had just met the two accused a couple of hours before this incident, and she and the others consumed alcohol and cocaine. Further, she did not spend a lot of time in their company. While her evidence was marred by various inconsistencies, I conclude I have an evidentiary basis upon which I can make some findings of fact which permit consideration of whether the offences are proven beyond a reasonable doubt.”
Court heard that on the early morning of Aug. 29, 2022, a plan to buy cocaine among near-strangers spiralled into violence, leaving Swift dead in a ditch with stab two wounds to his neck and Belhumeur stabbed four times in the neck.
The night’s events started with a chance encounter in a liquor store parking lot in Saskatoon. Swift and his friend, Belhumeur, were approached by a vehicle driven by Anthony Burley, with Ritzand and Lischka as passengers. Burley’s vehicle struck Swift, who had a broken leg, sparking a confrontation.
In an attempt to “smooth things over,” Burley invited the two strangers back to his home in the Evergreen neighbourhood of Saskatoon. He also wanted to potentially keep Belhumeur from reporting the parking lot incident to police. There the group decided to buy cocaine. Ritzand drove Burley’s car, with Lischka in the passenger seat and Burley, Swift and Belhumeur in the back, to make the purchase.
Trouble erupted on the drive back. Burley seized the bag of cocaine, which Swift had mostly paid for, and refused to give it up. An argument turned physical inside the vehicle. Belumeur testified that Lischka turned around, held up a knife and threatened to “shut up” Swift if he didn’t calm down.
For reasons never explained in court, Ritzand then drove the group to a secluded grid road near the intersection of Penner Road and Rural Road 3050, in the R. M. of Corman Park.
It was there that the situation turned deadly. Justice Tochor accepted Belhumeur’s evidence that both Ritzand and Lischka were outside the vehicle with Swift when he was fatally stabbed. The judge also found that one of the two men then pulled Belhumeur from the car, told her “you’re next,” and stabbed her four times in the neck.
Burley remained in the back seat of the car throughout the attacks, doing nothing to intervene, court heard. The three men then drove away, leaving Belhumeur and Swift for dead. A passing motorist later found Belhumeur, who survived her injuries.
During the trial, defence pointed the finger at Burley, presenting evidence of his internet searches for “murder,” his high-speed flight from police, and his attempts to flee the city. Defence for Ritzand and LIschka argued Burley was the real perpetrator.
Justice Tochor agreed that Burley played a “significant role” and was “not interested in telling the truth,” but concluded that his involvement didn’t erase the guilt of the two accused.
The defence pointed out numerous inconsistencies in Belhumeur’s testimony, particularly over who stabbed whom. At times, she identified Ritzand as her attacker and at other times, she named Lischka.
The judge said these inconsistencies weren’t from deceit, but from confusion. Having just met the two men hours before, and under the influence of alcohol and cocaine, Belhumeur was a reliable witness to the fact that both men were active participants, but unreliable in pinning the specific, fatal act on either Ritzand or Lischka.
Burley was called as a Crown witness. Justice Tochor concluded that Burley was a “deceptive and uncooperative,” witness who was “untruthful in many aspects,” and “only interested in protecting himself.”
In July 2023, the Crown withdrew the second-degree murder charge against Burley, replacing it with the lesser included charge of accessory after the fact.
Justice Tochor said regardless of who did the stabbing, both men were guilty as parties to the crime and acted in a “common purpose” and that each aided or encouraged the other.
“I find that both were present at the scene where Mr. Swift was stabbed.”
As a result, he convicted both Ritzand and Lischka of the lesser included offence of manslaughter in Swift’s death.
The judge applied the same logic to the attack on Belhumeur. Ritzand and Lischka were acquitted of attempted murder but found guilty of the lesser charge of aggravated assault.
Ritzand and Lischka will be sentenced at a later date.
