Brandon man who killed wife dies in prison
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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 15/12/2022 (1038 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
A Brandon man who killed his wife and then attempted suicide by tampering with the gas line in his home, which sparked a massive explosion, died in prison Wednesday.
Robert Hughes, 65, was convicted of second-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison in December 2021.
He’d been an inmate at Stony Mountain Institution, north of Winnipeg, since June 6.
The Corrections Service of Canada announced his death Thursday.
“Robert Hughes, an inmate from Stony Mountain Institution died while in our custody,” the statement read. “The inmate’s next of kin has been notified of his death. As in all cases involving the death of an inmate, Correctional Service Canada policy requires that the coroner be notified.”
The cause of death was not given.
On Oct. 22, 2019, firefighters responded to an explosion at Hughes’ home in the east end of Brandon.
Firefighters testified the walls of the home had been blown to pieces and Hughes was found seriously injured with a noose tied around his neck.
Betty Hughes, 63, was found inside the destroyed house; she had multiple cuts and was lying in a pool of blood. During a six-day trial in December 2021, it was revealed she died of blood loss after suffering an 11.7-centimetre wound that extended from her eyebrow, across her temple and into her ear.
Hughes tampered with the gas line, attempting to breathe in the fumes and commit suicide. A pilot light ignited the gas and caused an explosion.
He was taken to the Health Sciences Centre in Winnipeg; Brandon police arrested him Oct. 25.
Betty and Robert Hughes in 2011. (Facebook)
In June, Justice Scott Abel ruled Hughes wouldn’t be eligible for parole for 13 years.
Hughes filed a notice of appeal in July.
“Had the appeal been successful, we would have been in a position in which we were back in court. An appeal often results in a second trial, and that would’ve been additional stress on Mr. Hughes and his family members,” defence attorney Saul Simmonds said. “When a husband and wife are the subject of a case like this, the children and grandchildren are very seriously affected.”
tyler.searle@freepress.mb.ca
Tyler Searle is a multimedia producer who writes for the Free Press’s city desk. A graduate of Red River College Polytechnic’s creative communications program, he wrote for the Stonewall Teulon Tribune, Selkirk Record and Express Weekly News before joining the paper in 2022. Read more about Tyler.
Every piece of reporting Tyler produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press‘s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press’s history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.
Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber.
Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
Tyler Searle is a multimedia producer who writes for the Free Press’s city desk. A graduate of Red River College Polytechnic’s creative communications program, he wrote for the Stonewall Teulon Tribune, Selkirk Record and Express Weekly News before joining the paper in 2022. Read more about Tyler.
Every piece of reporting Tyler produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press‘s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press’s history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.
Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber.
Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
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