Charges stayed against one accused in 2023 fatal stabbing

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 16/04/2024 (594 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A Winnipeg man arrested in the May 2023 slaying of 41-year-old Kevin James Wescoupe was released from custody Tuesday, after Crown prosecutors stayed all charges against him.

Kevin Cook McKay, 24, was one of two men arrested May 15, two weeks after Wescoupe was fatally stabbed and another man seriously injured outside a Point Douglas neighbourhood home.

The manslaughter and aggravated assault charges against McKay were stayed, as prosecutors were not satisfied there was a reasonable likelihood of convicting the man, Crown attorney James Wood told court.

“The Crown has a continuing obligation to assess all cases before the courts,” Wood said. “Following a thorough review of all the evidence in this case, a determination was made that the Crown will be entering a stay of proceedings.”

McKay, who has no criminal record, has maintained his innocence “from Day 1,” said defence lawyer Martin Glazer.

“While we are grateful for the Crown attorneys entering a stay of proceedings, as a result, I understand of an ongoing investigation, we do lament the fact he has spent 11 months in custody for nothing,” Glazer said. “No one is going to compensate him for that.”

Taylor Brandon Lee Flett, 25, remains before the court, charged with second-degree murder and aggravated assault.

City police had said Wescoupe and a friend were attacked by two strangers behind a home on the 100 block of Austin Street North, around 1:15 a.m. May 2.

“A confrontation culminated between the two groups, leading to the stabbings,” Winnipeg Police Service spokeswoman Const. Dani McKinnon said at the time.

A neighbour told the Free Press at the time Wescoupe, his partner and newborn child were visiting the home, which was being watched by his mother-in-law while the owner was out of town.

Wescoupe — who she described as a “teddy bear” — and the other victim had just returned from the nearby Northern Hotel bar when a car pulled up behind the house, the neighbour said. The two men were attacked and the other men drove away, she said.

dean.pritchard@freepress.mb.ca