Manitoba

Verdict coming May 17 in case of accused letter bomber Guido Amsel

Judge Tracey Lord is expected to deliver a decision next month over who sent a letter bomb to a downtown law firm in 2015 that left a Winnipeg lawyer seriously injured.

Judge Tracey Lord's decision to be broadcast live

Guido Amsel, now 51, is charged with two counts of attempted murder and one count of aggravated assault in connection with a bombing at a Winnipeg law office. (Courtesy Winnipeg Police Service)

A court decision is expected next month over who sent a letter bomb to a downtown law firm in 2015 that exploded and left a Winnipeg lawyer seriously injured.

Judge Tracey Lord will deliver her verdict in the R v. Amsel case on Thursday, May 17, at 2 p.m. CT.

Judge Tracey Lord, sketched in November 2017 during the trial of accused letter bomber Guido Amsel. (CBC)

Guido Amsel, 51, was arrested in July 2015 after packages containing bombs were mailed to his ex-wife Iris and two law firms tied to an ongoing civil dispute. 

Amsel is charged with five counts of attempted murder, one count of aggravated assault and several explosives-related offences in connection to the three bomb packages, and a December 2013 explosion at his ex-wife's home in the rural municipality of St. Clements. No one was injured in latter incident.

Two of the bomb packages from 2015 were safely detonated by police, but a third went off in the hands of Winnipeg lawyer Maria Mitousis.

Mitousis, Iris Amsel's lawyer at the time, was seriously injured and lost her right hand after she pushed a button on a tape recorder that had been sent to her River Avenue office July 3, 2015. The tape recorder was a home-made explosive device.

The trial lasted nearly eight weeks, with testimony from dozens of witnesses.

While cameras are generally not allowed in Manitoba courtrooms, exceptions are made for certain high-profile cases; this is one such case, and there will be a live broadcast as the judge renders her decision.