Close X
Saturday, November 16, 2024
ADVT 
National

Shane Gyoba On Trial For Death Of Uncle Who Had Multiple Head Injuries: Pathologist

The Canadian Press, 14 Aug, 2015 12:53 PM
  • Shane Gyoba On Trial For Death Of Uncle Who Had Multiple Head Injuries: Pathologist
KAMLOOPS, B.C. — The fractured skull of a man allegedly beaten to death by his nephew resembled a jigsaw puzzle and his mouth was stuffed with dirt, a pathologist has testified.
 
Shane Gyoba, 29, has been charged with second-degree murder in connection with the June 2014 death of his uncle, Ed Gyoba.  
 
B.C. Supreme Court has heard a witness saw Shane Gyoba beating his uncle with a shovel following a fist fight in the front yard of a home in Ashcroft.
 
Dr. James Stephen said he performed an autopsy that showed Gyoba died as a result of massive head injuries.
 
Stephen found five bone fragments and multiple fracture lines on the right side of Gyoba’s skull.
 
“I found 10 or more pieces of this jigsaw-like skull fracture,” he said.
 
“There are multiple fractures at the base of the skull and multiple fractures on the upper part of the globe on the skull.”
 
Stephen said he found eight areas of injury on Gyoba’s body, likely the result of more than six blows, likely with a shovel or perhaps a shovel and an axe or a pipe.
 
He said Gyoba’s mouth had been filled with dirt prior to his death.
 
“I believe there is good evidence he was alive when the dirt was put in his mouth," he said.
 
“He swallowed some of the dirt. Dirt was found in his esophagus. He breathed some of the dirt. Dirt was found in his airways.”
 
Stephen said he believed Gyoba was likely unconscious when he ingested the dirt.
 
Gyoba’s widow has told court that Shane Gyoba’s arrival in Ashcroft 15 years ago turned her life upside down.
 
Barb Gyoba said Shane Gyoba’s father died before he was a teenager and that when he was 14, he moved from Saskatoon to live with the couple.
 
Gyoba said the accused had been in trouble with the law in Saskatoon and was on probation when he came to Ashcroft.
 
At that point in her testimony, Shane Gyoba interrupted his aunt, saying, “Don’t confuse me and Ed. Don’t confuse myself as your son.”
 
Each time she was interrupted, despite a request from Justice Dev Dley to "remain quiet," Barb Gyoba held her hand up to block her nephew from her view.
 
Gyoba described her nephew as a happy kid who changed in high school, becoming "the boss of the school" and that a teacher let him teach a class.
 
Barb Gyoba said his aggressive personality took a toll on her, eventually leading to a nervous breakdown before she moved out of the house.
 
“It was nerve wracking because my husband protected me from him."
 
Ed Gyoba remained in the house with the accused and the pair spent a lot of time in a shop on the property, she testified.
 
“They would sit on either side of a wood stove in reclining chairs and Shane would talk and Eddy would listen — for hours, days."
 
Court heard that weeks before he was killed, Ed Gyoba became fed up with Shane Gyoba.
 
“Eddy came over and he had a hammer out and he said, ‘This is it, he’s got to get out,’” Barb Gyoba said.
 
“Shane said, ‘It’s my house. Why would I move out?’ But, Ed owned the house.”
 
Gyoba said she and her husband had agreed to meet for lunch on June 2, 2014 but that when she got to the house, she saw crime-scene tape.
 
“The sergeant came over, he saw me there, and he said, ‘We talked about this, didn’t we?’
 
“We did talk about it, a year ago, about Shane doing something,” she said. (Kamloops This Week)

MORE National ARTICLES

Cowboy Turfed From Calgary Stampede For Whipping Horse During Event

Cowboy Turfed From Calgary Stampede For Whipping Horse During Event
Judges say cowboy Tuf Cooper, who is from Decatur, Texas, aggressively whipped his horse with a rope during the tie-down event Wednesday afternoon.

Cowboy Turfed From Calgary Stampede For Whipping Horse During Event

Growing Wildfire Forces People From Maligne Valley In Jasper National Park

Growing Wildfire Forces People From Maligne Valley In Jasper National Park
JASPER, Alta. — A wildfire burning in Jasper National Park has grown substantially as staff work to get campers and other visitors out of the area.

Growing Wildfire Forces People From Maligne Valley In Jasper National Park

B.C. Coroners Service Denies Deleting Fired Health Worker's Suicide Note

VICTORIA — The British Columbia Coroners Service denies it deleted the suicide note of a man who remains part of a long-running controversy that surrounds the firings of eight government health workers.

B.C. Coroners Service Denies Deleting Fired Health Worker's Suicide Note

B.C., First Nation On Path To Reconciliation Over Dam, Grave Destruction

B.C., First Nation On Path To Reconciliation Over Dam, Grave Destruction
An agreement signed between the province and the Cheslatta Carrier Nation is expected to guide reconciliation talks on issues including the 1952 building of the Kenney Dam in the northern Interior.

B.C., First Nation On Path To Reconciliation Over Dam, Grave Destruction

Ten Grass Fires Extinguished In North Vancouver; Police Seek Arsonist

Ten Grass Fires Extinguished In North Vancouver; Police Seek Arsonist
VANCOUVER — Police say firefighters have extinguished 10 small grass fires that were intentionally set on a trail in North Vancouver, B.C.

Ten Grass Fires Extinguished In North Vancouver; Police Seek Arsonist

Posh Hundred-dollar Hot Dogs Sell Out In A Day At Calgary Stampede

Posh Hundred-dollar Hot Dogs Sell Out In A Day At Calgary Stampede
CALGARY — A food truck selling a posh hot dog for $100 at the Calgary Stampede has sold out after just one day. The Dragon Dog is infused with expensive cognac and topped with Kobe beef, lobster and truffles.

Posh Hundred-dollar Hot Dogs Sell Out In A Day At Calgary Stampede