“It was a tragic and unfortunate accident,” says the killer at the sentencing hearing

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A man who fatally shot his teenage girlfriend by accident apologized to the victim’s family at a sentencing hearing Thursday, saying the death “hurts me deeply every day.”

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In February, Harjot Singh Deo, who was 19 at the time and is now 25, pleaded guilty to the August 2017 involuntary manslaughter of 19-year-old Bhavkiran (Kiran) Dhesi at Deo’s family home in Surrey. . He also pleaded guilty to interfering with his body.

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The court heard that Deo, who was leading a criminal lifestyle at the time and carrying an illegal firearm, had gone out to dinner earlier in the evening with Dhesi, who arrived at her house in a BMW.

When they returned to the house after dinner, the two went up to Deo’s room, where Deo accidentally shot Dhesi in the head. As he was pulling the firearm out of his pocket, the gun accidentally discharged.

The victim collapsed on Deo’s bed and died instantly. Later, Deo put Dhesi’s body in the BMW and took it to another place where he set it on fire. He also helped dispose of a bloody mattress and other evidence. The firearm was never recovered.

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On Thursday, the second day of a sentencing hearing at the British Columbia Supreme Court in Vancouver, Deo took the opportunity to address the court and members of the victim’s family in the public gallery.

“I’d like to apologize to Kiran’s family,” Deo said as she stood in front of the dock. “I cannot imagine the pain and sorrow I have caused you. No one deserves to lose their life, and no family, not a single family in this world, deserves the pain that I have caused their family.”

Deo apologized for what she called her “careless actions,” adding that she did not mean to hurt the victim.

“I loved her so much, I would never have hurt her. Knowing that I somehow caused her death hurts me deeply every day and I have to live my life knowing that the person I loved so much died by my hand.”

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Deo added that he did not expect Dhesi’s family to forgive him.

“It was a tragic and unfortunate accident that devastated them and broke me, but I am ready to accept the consequences and pick up the pieces and try to go on living. I hope his family and friends find some comfort in learning what really happened.”

Deo’s apology did not sit well with at least one member of the victim’s family.

Anjali Dhesi, a sister of Kiran, said outside court that she did not think Deo was sorry for anything he had done.

“If he really felt bad about what he did to Kiran, he could have pleaded guilty five years ago when he was originally charged with second-degree murder,” he told reporters.

“He could have pleaded guilty at that time and the fact that he waited so long to plead guilty to a lesser charge, and they are arguing for him to get less time, just shows that he is not sorry. This is just a show for the court.”

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Crown requested a 10-year prison sentence for Deo, with the defense arguing that six years in prison was more appropriate.

Anjali Dhesi said no amount of jail time will be enough for her family.

“He’s not going to bring Kiran back. But because of the charge of indignity to human remains, because of everything he did after killing Kiran, what the defense says is not enough. He tried to erase it completely. He tried to take away our chance to say goodbye to her. So six years is not enough. That’s almost like a slap in the face for us.”

Judge Jeanne Watchuk is expected to deliver her sentence on October 18.

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