Man accused in restaurant owner’s death has long criminal record, suffers from psychosis

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This article was published 29/01/2024 (639 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The man accused of causing the death of a St. James restaurant owner last week was recently declared fit to stand trial on a mischief charge despite psychiatric professionals determining he was suffering from unspecified psychosis.

Curtis Ross Dalebozik, 38, has been charged with manslaughter and uttering threats after Kyriakos Vogiatzakis, 51, died following an altercation outside Cork & Flame on Portage Avenue at about 5:30 p.m. last Wednesday.

Winnipeg police said major crimes detectives determined the two got into a confrontation outside the restaurant, during which Vogiatzakis was pushed to the ground and attacked until he fell unconscious.

He was rushed to hospital in critical condition, but died. Police arrested Dalebozik shortly afterward.

Vogiatzakis’s death was met with shock and concern within the restaurant industry. Friends said Vogiatzakis worked long hours at his restaurant, where he was known for going from table to table to greet customers and catch up with regulars.

Mike Vogiatzakis said Monday that his brother “was an angel” and called his death “senseless.”

“He was a negotiator, always fixing people’s problems… he was a loving person, probably the most compassionate person that’s ever walked on this Earth,” he said, adding Kyriakos was generous to customers and strangers.

“He was a spirit that you don’t find too often, he just deeply cared about people.”

Last November, Dalebozik pleaded guilty in provincial court to one count of mischief under $5,000 for “destroying” the front door of a fishing supply and cannabis shop in Selkirk in December 2022. He was a regular patron of the shop, court heard, and it cost just under $1,400 to replace the broken glass.

Defence lawyer Aaron Braun noted at Dalebozik’s Nov. 9 sentencing hearing that the court had ordered a fitness assessment for his client to determine whether he could stand trial or if he was not criminally responsible due to mental disorder.

Psychiatric professionals deemed him fit, but assessed him as having unspecified psychosis — a diagnosis made when a person is found to be psychotic but with no clear link to a specific disorder, such as schizophrenia.

Court heard he was living at a month-to-month rental hotel in Winnipeg, which Braun qualified as a step above living in homeless shelters. Multiple sources told the Free Press that Dalebozik had been living in the Boulevard Motel next door to the Cork and Flame.

Provincial court Judge Donald Slough sentenced Dalebozik to 12 months of supervised probation, which he’s accused of breaching the next day by failing to report to his probation officer, court records show. That charge remains before the court. The sentence stipulated that he attend counselling as directed.

Mike Vogiatzakis is angry about Dalebozik’s past history in the criminal justice system and the fact he was wanted for allegedly breaching his probation.

“We really don’t care about his issues, his issues should have been taken care of, and instead of releasing people out on the streets like the justice system is doing, keep him locked up, get him help, and only when they’re proven to be eligible to be out on the streets should they be released,” said the victim’s brother, who owns Voyage Funeral Home.

He railed at violence in Winnipeg, which he tied to concerns with repeat offenders.

“No wonder our city is the way it is — the violence is outrageous,” he said.

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“Trust me, as a funeral director I know what goes on in the background. Did I ever think, for a million years, that my brother would be on that list of people that were killed? No.”

Dalebozik, whose criminal record dates to 2009, has also been convicted of breaching court orders 12 times, other counts of mischief, drug possession, possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose, obstructing or resisting a peace officer, uttering threats, motor vehicle theft, impaired driving and dangerous driving, court records show.

Dalebozik had a history of loitering around the restaurant, police spokesman Const. Jason Michalyshen said.

“It sounds like it’s been… problematic where the accused had made contact with customers (and) the owner (in the past),” Michalyshen said previously, adding he wasn’t aware of any physical confrontations before last Wednesday.

erik.pindera@freepress.mb.ca

Erik Pindera
Reporter

Erik Pindera is a reporter for the Free Press, mostly focusing on crime and justice. The born-and-bred Winnipegger attended Red River College Polytechnic, wrote for the community newspaper in Kenora, Ont. and reported on television and radio in Winnipeg before joining the Free Press in 2020.  Read more about Erik.

Every piece of reporting Erik 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.