Sentencing hearing for three men in deadly Whistler swarming attack

VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – Three men found guilty in connection with a fatal attack on a teen in Whistler more than three years ago are expected in court today.

A sentencing hearing is set to begin for the trio involved in the killing of Luka Gordic. They were teens at the time, so they can’t be named.

One was found guilty of second-degree murder. The other two were convicted of manslaughter. The sentencing hearing will determine whether they will be sentenced as youths or adults.

Gordic, 19, was swarmed and then stabbed to death at Whistler Village in May, 2015.

A fourth person, Arvin Golic, has already been sentenced to seven years for manslaughter. He was 18 at the time of the attack.

The youth who was found guilty of second-degree murder had Gordic’s blood on his clothing and on a knife that was found in his pocket after the killing. His lawyers had argued he had no memory of any involvement of the incident because he had been drinking and taking Xanax. However, the judge said the gaps in the man’s memory seemed to be “highly selective,” and did not believe his evidence about his level of intoxication.

The evidence against one of the men who was convicted of manslaughter was circumstantial, including three small spots of Gordic’s DNA found on his shoe. The DNA was not confirmed to be blood.

The case against the other person convicted of manslaughter included evidence that his DNA was found on a knife found at ths cene of the attack.

 – With files from Hana Mae Nassar and Ellen Coulter