Judge finds man with bipolar disorder guilty of 2nd-degree murder of Winnipeg taxi driver

A Winnipeg man with bipolar disorder who stabbed taxi driver Balvir Toor 17 times nearly three years ago has been found guilty of second-degree murder after a judge rejected his lawyers' argument that he was not criminally responsible for the killing.

Okoth Obeing, 23, felt animus toward South Asian people, disliked taxi drivers and felt being asked for prepayments for cab rides showed disrespect, Court of King's Bench Justice Joan McKelvey said in a decision delivered Tuesday morning.

"His racism, anger, frustration and feelings of disrespect fuelled this impulsive act of violence," McKelvey told the court. "He had never before acted in such an overtly aggressive and violent manner despite many manic episodes.

"The accused intended his act and knew what he was doing and was able to understand the physical consequences that would flow from his actions."

Toor, 44, was killed in the early morning of March 19, 2020. Police previously said they found Toor seriously injured in his taxicab around 5:30 a.m. on Burrows Avenue. He was rushed to hospital in critical condition but died.

Obeing's lawyers conceded he was responsible for the killing but argued their client lacked the state of mind to control his thoughts and behaviour.

McKelvey said the burden was on the defence to prove Obeing was not criminally responsible.

Judge rejects psychiatrist's testimony

The judge rejected the expert opinion of Dr. Jeffrey Waldman, a forensic psychiatrist who assessed Obeing after the killing and who was called to testify by the defence.

Waldman testified Obeing's symptoms of bipolar disorder left him unable to use thought to control his behaviour at the time of Toor's killing.

McKelvey said much of Waldman's assessment relied on self-reporting by Obeing. The judge told court she accepts much of Waldman's testimony, but she found there are alternative explanations, inferences or motives for the killing that were uncovered at trial.

"None of these identified questions or alternative non-psychotic motives were posed by Dr. Waldman to the accused or investigated, despite his recognition as to their existence and relevance," McKelvey told court. "I am satisfied that flaws exist in Dr. Waldman's analysis because of his lack of investigation of non-psychotic motives."

McKelvey told court that caused her to give little weight to Dr. Waldman's testimony as to the accused's capacity at the time of the killing.

The judge ruled other factors, including an interview Obeing did with police in which he told officers they had the wrong guy, suggests he knew something wrong had happened.

"He knew what he had done and why," McKelvey told the court. "The after-the-fact conduct is relevant in that the accused fled from the scene, disposed of a weapon, washed blood from his hands and ultimately lied to police.

"Those areas as conceded by Dr. Waldman required conscious thought as something had been done that the accused needed to run from."

Alex Steigerwald, one of Obeing's lawyers, said outside court his client is disappointed with the outcomes, but they respect the reasons and the decision of the court.

"Mental health was at the forefront of the case overall," Steigerwald told reporters.

"Certainly it was a very relevant factor in the judge's consideration of whether to convict the accused or not. Ultimately the court rejected key portions of our doctor's testimony."

Members of Toor's family were not in attendance for the decision but watched the judge's ruling remotely.

Obeing's family was in the courtroom but declined comment outside court.

Sentencing has been scheduled for April 27.