A jury has found Jeremy Steinke guilty of killing his girlfriend's parents and her eight-year-old brother.
"I have spoken to family members affected and they are relieved, they are happy to see closure for sure," says Crown Prosecutor, Ramona Robins.
The jury took about 11 hours to conclude that Steinke is guilty of three counts of first-degree murder.
When the verdict was read out, Steinke kept his head down and his mother started to cry.
Throughout the trial, the 25-year-old admitted to stabbing the parents to death in their Medicine Hat home but said he never killed the little boy. He also testified that he did not plan the murders.
Defense Lawyer, Alain Hepner says his client was prepared for any outcome. "We talked about the reality of the verdict, the reality of the trial and the reality of the facts, so I prepared him for all the eventualities."
The Crown asked that Steinke's sentencing take place in Medicine Hat saying "We are a small community, it is only 60,000 people, and a lot of people were personally affected and I thought it would be important for them to see the end of it."
The judge agreed with the request which means Steinke will be sentenced in Medicine Hat on December 15th. His conviction carries a life sentence with no chance of parole for 25 years.
In 2007, Steinke's girlfriend - who was 12 at the time of the murders - was also found guilty of three counts of first-degree murder. She was sentenced to 10 years which is the maximum allowed under the Youth Criminal Justice Act. She is serving her time in a psychiatric facility.
