Guilty murder plea in kidnapping, extortion plot sends man to prison for life with no chance of parole for 15 years

Zeyad Shammo was tortured and beaten to death in a kidnapping-extortion plot that netted his captors a ransom of $900 and some crack cocaine.

Sonny Balemba, one of three men arrested in the September 2024 killing, was sentenced Monday to life in prison with no chance of parole for 15 years.

“The violence that was used against Mr. Shammo (was) extreme, prolonged and planned and appears to be strictly for a financial purpose,” said Court of King’s Bench Justice Shauna McCarthy.

“That is the worst kind of violence that the court can see, in my view. It’s not a crime of passion… it’s not for any reason other than to try and gain money.”

Balemba and co-accused Robert James Chaykowski, both 26, were arrested days after the killing. Co-accused Chad Jason Dandan, 25, was arrested just last month in Surrey, B.C. on a Canada-wide warrant.

Chaykowski and Dandan are each charged with first-degree murder and remain before the court.

Balemba, who court heard did not actively participate in the torture and beating of Shammo, admitted guilt to the lesser charge of second-degree murder in a plea bargain that took into consideration “serious issues regarding his right to counsel… and admissibility of critical evidence,” Crown attorney Vanessa Gama told court.

Following Balemba’s arrest, police continued to question him for two hours before allowing him to speak to a lawyer, violating his charter rights, Gama said. At the time, police did not know where Shammo was or that he was already dead.

“That is the worst kind of violence that the court can see, in my view. It’s not a crime of passion… it’s not for any reason other than to try and gain money.”

“This was a deliberate investigative decision motivated by the belief that consulting counsel might impede (investigators’) ability to gather information about Mr. Shammo’s whereabouts,” Gama said.

Police later conducted a warrantless search of Balemba’s phone and printed communications between Balemba and his lawyer.

“But for the significant Charter concerns… the Crown would have sought a substantially higher period of parole ineligibility,” Gama said.

Shammo’s parents and sister were present in court for Balemba’s sentencing but left the room during graphic portions of Gama’s submission.

“Losing my brother shattered our entire family,” Shammo’s sister Sulaf Shammo said in a victim impact statement Gama read out in court. “All of us are grieving deeply…. We were a close family, now we are all lost.”

The circumstances of the murder were detailed in a lengthy agreed statement of facts Gama read in court.

The three co-accused kidnapped the 22-year-old Ontario man under the direction of two other suspects who remain under investigation by police.

Chaykowski lured Shammo to a Bristol Avenue home Sept. 9 on the pretext Shammo would sell him drugs. Shammo was beaten in the garage and then taken to the basement, where Chaykowski continued to beat him.

At some point in the evening, Chaykowski, wearing bloody latex gloves, returned upstairs and “asked for the music to be turned louder to drown out the screaming,” Gama said.

“Losing my brother shattered our entire family.”

Later, Dandan twisted Shammo’s arm until it broke and took pictures of himself as Shammo lay injured and unconscious on the basement floor.

Around 4 a.m., another man arrived at Bristol Avenue to drive the kidnappers and Shammo around in the man’s car as the kidnappers continued to negotiate a ransom for Shammo, who was wrapped naked in a shower curtain and placed in the trunk.

“The psychological terror inflicted on (Shammo) is difficult to imagine,” Gama said. “He was entirely vulnerable… with no means of escape.”

Sometime before 8:30 a.m., following more negotiations, members of Shammo’s drug network placed a ransom of $900 and a quantity of drugs at Whittier Park.

Balemba and two other men drove to the park to obtain the ransom, but when they returned to Bristol Avenue, they found Shammo dead.

Shammo’s roommate called 911 on Sept. 10 to report him missing. He told police he had called Shammo the previous evening and the phone was answered by a man who said: “I got your buddy, figure out how much your buddy is worth.”

Subsequent negotiations were completed using a phone that police later determined was linked to Balemba.

“The psychological terror inflicted on (Shammo) is difficult to imagine.”

Shammo’s roommate said kidnappers told him after the ransom was paid that Shammo had been dropped off at a McDonald’s restaurant in Brandon. Shammo’s body had not been moved, and remained at the Bristol Avenue home, where police found it Sept. 13.

Shammo suffered eight “penetrating wounds” to his back, “significant” blunt-force injuries to his head and extensive bruising “consistent with a hammer.”

An analysis of Balemba’s cellphone revealed several chilling text exchanges as the two sides bargained for Shammo’s release.

“You wanna start changing plans we gonna start chopping off fingers,” one of the kidnappers texted.

“It’s his life you are leaving,” a kidnapper texted during a disagreement over where to leave the ransom. “As long as you can live with that, fine with me…. Good luck explaining what happened to his parents.”

Balemba has a “tremendous amount of regret” about the killing, said defence lawyer Shimon Segal, who offered no explanation for Balemba’s involvement.

“There isn’t a reason that can be stated… that can in any way justify” Balemba’s actions, Segal said.

dean.pritchard@freepress.mb.ca