The Crown wants a 19-year prison sentence for Obnes Regis, the Langley City man who was convicted of killing his wife, who also admitted to dismembering her and dumping body parts in the Fraser River near Fort Langley.
His sentencing hearing began Monday, June 17, in New Westminster and included victim impact statements from 10 family members and friends of Naomi Onotera.
Crown Crichton Pike is seeking 14 years for manslaughter and five consecutive years for committing indignity to human remains. That is the longest possible sentence for indignity to human remains.
When her family could not reach Onotera in August 2021, she was reported missing and police launched first a search and investigation that was taken over by IHIT.
Through his lawyer, Regis admitted previously in court to “one punch” to Onotera’s head, which is similar to his admission during a police interrogation after his December 2021 arrest.
The Crown also reviewed details Regis provided as part of a Mr. Big operation in which undercover officers befriended him, and had him re-enact parts of the killing and body disposal.
Pike read excerpts from transcripts of Regis’s discussions with undercover officers. He admitted to them that he hit Onotera in the bathroom of their Langley City home. He then left her on the bathroom floor for about an hour while she was still breathing, waiting for her to die.
"It was a big punch," Regis said in the transcripts.
For much of that time, her daughter was in a playpen next to her in the bathroom.
He decided not to call 911 nor take her to the hospital because he thought it would cause more trouble, according to Pike.
At his trial when he changed his plea to guilty, the court heard how Regis told undercover officers that he disposed of his wife’s body parts along the Fort to Fort Trail in Fort Langley and in the Fraser River.
Both Crown and defense have agreed that Regis deserves the highest possible sentence for causing indignity to human remains. Given that, Pike did not go into some of the more graphic details of what Regis did to dispose of his wife's body.
However, he noted that the details were "horrific and brutal and monstrous."
Pike also told Justice Martha Devlin that on the range of manslaughter charges, Regis's conduct fell very near a murder, the most serious type of manslaughter, and calling for a longer sentence than average.
Family expressed grief, fear, and anger at Regis, whom the family called “Reg” before Naomi’s death.
“My sister’s murder is something I will never heal from,” said her sister, Kirsten Kerr.
She spoke of how Naomi’s daughter, who cannot be named under a publication ban, was just 18 months old when her mother went missing.
The child would wake in the night, wondering where her mother was, the court was told.
“I have no forgiveness in my heart for you, Reg, and every breath you take is a breath wasted,” Kerr said.
Onotera's mother, Maureen, talked about how she and Naomi had spoken almost every day.
“We never thought we would be living our final years without her,” Maureen said.
Her father, Larry, died last December, without seeing the conclusion of the trial. Regis elected for a trial then entered a guilty plea part way through proceedings.
“Naomi was more than my daughter, she was my best friend. Since she was stolen from me, I get through the days, but the joy has gone from my life,” Maureen said.
Other family members who read victim impact statements were nieces and a nephew, aunts and uncles, and a long-time friend. Several cried while speaking, and many people in the courtroom's gallery were crying as well as the listened.
Relatives testified to experiencing not just grief, but depression and anxiety. Some of Naomi's relatives have suffered fears that Regis could harm or take his young daughter.
All of them spoke of the fact that Naomi's child would grow up without her mother.
Although Regis has lived in Canada for 21 years, he does not have permanent resident status. After his sentence is served, Regis will be deported to his native Haiti, Pike noted.
The sentencing was scheduled from Monday, June 17 to Wednesday, June 19. The defense would have made its sentencing recommendations after the Crown but that took place after the newspaper press time and will be reported soon.
