Kitchener Resident Sentenced to Eight Years for Manslaughter and Kidnapping
On November 26, 2019, tragedy struck when 20-year-old Irshad Sabriye was shot multiple times. His lifeless body was eventually discovered abandoned along Highway 7/8, a grim scene that startled the local community. Abdulla Haredo, now 28, stood trial and was found guilty of manslaughter and kidnapping for his involvement in Sabriye’s death. During a court hearing on Wednesday, he received an eight-year prison sentence.
Remarkably, Haredo has already served four years in pretrial detention. Although he had to endure difficult jail conditions, this time counted as six years against his total sentence, meaning he has only two more years to fulfill.
Sabriye and his family immigrated to Canada in 2006, hoping for a brighter future. A proud graduate of Eastwood Collegiate Institute, he had four siblings. The loss left a stark void that his mother and sister agonizingly felt, unable to cope with seeing his empty bed. In a heart-wrenching statement shared in court by Crown prosecutor Brendan Gould, the family expressed their grief: “They decided to leave Canada and have yet to return, hoping to heal from the profound and sudden pain of losing Irshad.”
The circumstances surrounding Sabriye’s death paint a chilling picture. Authorities found his body near the Courtland Avenue on-ramp after a concerned citizen alerted 911. The caller described a scene of chaos, noting how a car had stopped on the ramp, the driver exited, and moments later, gunfire erupted.
Just two hours later, police discovered Sabriye’s Nissan Sentra abandoned in a parking lot on Connaught Street, eerily charred with bullet holes. Nearly nine months slipped by before any charges were filed. Although it was clear wrongdoing had occurred, no one faced murder charges.
The prosecution’s narrative suggested that Sabriye, who was dealing with his own legal issues, attempted to steal Haredo’s firearm with the aim of committing robberies to fund his legal defense. However, he only secured the clip. In a twist of events, Haredo enlisted another accomplice to recover the stolen clip, leading to a meeting at Fairview Park mall.
Gould explained to the jury how the night devolved into chaos after 2 a.m. Haredo, along with his companion, forced their way into Sabriye’s car. Reports indicate that Haredo struck Sabriye three times, likely with a gun, incapacitating him. With Sabriye subdued in the vehicle, Haredo’s accomplice took control and drove towards Highway 7/8.
According to the Crown’s account, as Sabriye regained consciousness, Haredo found himself unable to restrain him, leading to Sabriye being shot by the other man. “The motive for all this is clear,” Gould asserted. “Irshad tried to steal Abdulla’s gun earlier that day. This was retribution.”
Strikingly, the individual who is alleged to have fired the fatal shots was never charged. Haredo’s conviction for manslaughter indicated that while there was no intent to kill, Sabriye’s death resulted from actions associated with the kidnapping.
The case took a dark turn when police executed search warrants at residences on Vanier Drive and Albert Street, not far from where the body was found. They uncovered an arsenal: two loaded handguns, 14 grams of cocaine, 21 grams of fentanyl, prescription drugs, digital scales, and a drug press, leading to drug trafficking charges against two individuals.
Haredo’s background complicates the narrative. Defense attorney Craig Zeeh described a childhood marked by hardship, as Haredo spent his early years in a refugee camp in Yemen before coming to Canada as a teenager. Notably, he is not a Canadian citizen.
As the sentencing concluded, Justice Gerry Taylor extended the opportunity for Haredo to say a few words. He chose to remain silent, leaving the courtroom filled with palpable tension.
In closing, Sabriye’s family mourned their loss, stating, “The pain that the killing caused us is indescribable. We continue to grieve as a family. This has turned our lives upside down. Whenever someone leaves home, we have this feeling of fear and uneasiness that the individual may not come back.”
