Killer’s day parole extended

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This article was published 27/03/2015 (4044 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A notorious Winnipeg killer is gradually working his way back into the community after federal officials say he’s made legitimate changes to his troubled life.

Robert Dmytruk, 37, shot Eric Vargas to death and wounded his girlfriend, Quyen-Vn Raceles, in the parking lot of Chalmers Community Centre in 1996. On the night of the killing, Dmytruk and a co-accused arrived at the club expecting to fight members of a rival gang. When nobody showed up, they turned their weapons on Vargas, 20, and Raceles, 19, who were sitting and talking in a vehicle.

Vargas was an honours student studying economics at the University of Manitoba and vice-president of the Filipino Students Association. Raceles was struck by four bullets that hit her in the shoulder, hip and foot. A quiet, well-liked and talented woman known for her singing, Raceles managed to drive about a block from the shooting before crashing the car into a light standard.

Dmytruk was convicted of second-degree murder and attempted murder and given a life sentence with no chance of parole for 15 years. He hit that mark in 2011, but waited until last fall to apply for day parole.

Officials with the National Parole Board granted him six months of day-parole privileges last September. Dmytruk was rewarded with another six-month term following a hearing last week. Documents obtained Thursday by the Free Press show they have been impressed by his efforts in the community.

“You have taken responsibility for your actions, have shown insight into your criminal thinking and have shown an appropriate level of remorse and victim empathy,” the parole board wrote in the March 18 decision.

Dmytruk is currently being housed at the Rockwood Institution, a minimum-security facility just north of Winnipeg. Day parole allows him to spend considerable time unsupervised in the community, although he must report to a secured facility each night unless special permission for overnight leave is granted.

“You have demonstrated a commitment to the supervision progress as well as the rules and regulations of the community correctional centre. You have participated in programming and counselling with positive feedback to date regarding your level of motivation and participation,” the parole board wrote.

Raceles submitted a victim-impact statement to the parole board, explaining how she continues to suffer from poor sleep, disturbing dreams and a constant fear of leaving her home at night.

Dmytruk hasn’t always been described as a model prisoner. In the past, there were several critical reports about the risk he posed to the public, along with his institutional behaviour and the facts of his crime, which made national headlines for its random brutality.

Dmytruk began receiving escorted temporary absences (ETAs) several years ago, allowing him to visit malls, the public library, a city gym and 7-Eleven. The passes allowed him to leave prison for up to eight hours at a time, provided he was with an approved supervisor.

That drew the ire of many, including Manitoba Tory MP Shelly Glover, who called it “ridiculous” a killer could taste freedom before even being eligible for parole. There are no restrictions on when prisoners serving life sentences can apply for temporary absences, but they must have a “structured and specific” plan approved in advance.

In 2010, the parole board denied Dmytruk’s bid for unescorted temporary absences. The board said that would pose an “undue risk to society” and cited Dmytruk’s previous gang involvement and track record behind bars, which includes 11 “institutional incidents” in the few years he’d been at Rockwood.

However, the parole board now says Dmytruk has renounced his gang status, become involved in a stable romantic relationship, been drug-free since 2010 and reduced his overall risk to “low and manageable.”

www.mikeoncrime.com