LAKELAND – On Feb. 19, the Supreme Court of Canada dismissed the appeal of Roger Bilodeau, who was convicted of manslaughter in the deaths of Maurice Cardinal and Jacob Sansom near Glendon in 2020.
As previously heard during the trial, Cardinal, 57, and Sansom, 39, had been hunting earlier in the day March 27, 2020, killing and butchering a moose. While driving along a rural road that night, they stopped briefly near Roger Bilodeau’s home.
Roger believed Sansom and Cardinal were looking for a home to break into and he left the house in pursuit of the hunters.
Roger followed Sansom and Cardinal for over 7 km, at times reaching speeds of over 150 km/h. During the pursuit, Roger phoned his son Anthony Bilodeau, asking him to bring a gun.
Anthony shot Sansom in the chest and then shot Cardinal three times. The bodies of Sansom and Cardinal were found at 4 a.m. the next morning.
In August 2022, Roger was sentenced to 10 years in prison, minus time served, for his role in the deaths of Sansom and Cardinal, while Anthony was sentenced to life in prison without the eligibility for parole for 13 years in January 2023. Anthony was found guilty of second-degree murder in the death of Cardinal, and manslaughter in the death of Sansom.
Family responds
Jacob’s widow, Sarah Sansom, says her family is happy with the top court’s decision on Feb. 19. Sarah flew to Ottawa to attend Roger’s appeal, which she says was denied within 15 minutes.
“We’re extremely happy that the Supreme Court made a good decision,” she said, adding the conclusion of the appeal also means her family can finally talk about the cases. A court-imposed gag order prevented her family from speaking during the trials.
Sarah said her family has not had peace since the murders. “We had to stay silent through it all,” causing a lot of anger to the family for the last five years, she says. “Now, we no longer have to because it’s done.”
Sarah claims there have been many rumours, lies, and slander spread by some people about her husband and Cardinal during and even after the trials including through social media.
The misinformation being spread included accusing the two victims of having ill intentions when they were driving near Roger’s home, Sarah said.
“We just want to reiterate that those were, in fact, lies and slander and were completely untrue,” she said, and were proven wrong in court.
Sarah said she was also accused of paying off the court. “You took my husband’s life. I don’t have money to live, let alone pay off [the] court.”
She said, “Jake and Morris were amazing men. They were good men. They had families that loved them. Children, grandchildren, nieces, and nephews that have to live without them.”
Sarah said the court’s decision will help the family move on.
“We should be able to have peace now. It’s time.”
Sarah also expressed thanks to everyone who has continued to support the family. People who helped share the family’s story and helped “keep [Jacob] and Maurice’s voices alive.”
It has been a long five years for the family.
“It’s been a fight . . . We just want to grieve our loved ones.”
