The Altona murder occurred in

Altona, Manitoba Altona is a town in southern Manitoba, Canada, about 100 km south-west of Winnipeg and 158 km north of Grand Forks, North Dakota. The population at the 2011 Census was 4,123 residents. Old Altona was founded in 1880 by Plautdietsch-spe ...

, Canada, on November 17, 1990. Curtis Klassen, aged 15, was murdered by 17-year-old Earl Giesbrecht. Another teen, Tyler Pelke, aged 14, survived great bodily injuries and alerted authorities. Geisbrecht was arrested shortly after, and confessed to the murder. Despite being a

juvenile Juvenile may refer to: *Juvenile status, or minor (law), prior to adulthood *Juvenile (organism) *Juvenile (rapper) (born 1975), American rapper * ''Juvenile'' (2000 film), Japanese film * ''Juvenile'' (2017 film) *Juvenile (greyhounds), a greyho ...

offender, he was prosecuted and convicted to life in prison. Thirty years later, in 2020, Giesbrecht was granted a conditional release. The murder and subsequent release of the perpetrator gained attention from Canadian media.

Murder

On the night of November 17, 1990, 14-year-old Tyler Pelke and 15-year-old Curtis Klassen were at Pelke's home, after attending an event for their hockey team. While watching ''

The Hunt for Red October ''The Hunt for Red October'' is the debut novel by American author Tom Clancy, first published on October 1, 1984, by the Naval Institute Press. It depicts Soviet submarine captain Marko Ramius as he seemingly goes rogue with his country's cutt ...

'', 17-year-old Earl Giesbrecht knocked on their door. Giesbrecht threatened the boys with a

.357 Magnum The .357 Smith & Wesson Magnum, .357 S&W Magnum, .357 Magnum, or 9×33mmR as it is known in unofficial metric designation, is a smokeless powder cartridge with a bullet diameter. It was created by Elmer Keith, Phillip B. Sharpe, and Douglas B. ...

. After tying up, torturing and sexually assaulting them, Giesbrecht stabbed both boys, killing Klassen, and set fire to the house. Despite his injuries, including a slit throat and third-degree burns to 25% of his body, Pelke managed to escape and alerted a neighbour.

Aftermath and controversy

Classmates described Giesbrecht as a "bully" and "manipulative". During his trial, Giesbrecht testified he had been molested as a child, and bullied for being gay. He had "revenge fantasies" after Pelke and Klassen made a demeaning comment to him. Giesbrecht was convicted of

first-degree murder Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification or valid excuse, especially the unlawful killing of another human with malice aforethought. ("The killing of another person without justification or excuse, especially the c ...

and attempted murder, and although 17, sentenced to life in prison in

Rockwood Institution Rockwood Institution is a federal minimum-security facility located in the community of Stony Mountain, Rural Municipality of Rockwood, Manitoba, about 11 mi (18 km) from Winnipeg. It opened in 1962 and can accommodate up to 167 inmate ...

with no parole until 2015. Described as a model inmate, Giesbrecht earned degrees in business administration and human resources. Pelke became a firefighter, inspirational speaker and victim's rights advocate, visiting and forgiving Giesbrecht while he was in prison. Giesbrecht was granted temporary absences from prison starting in 2010, against Pelke's testimony that, "A life sentence was given and, as such, should be served." In 2020, Giesbrecht was granted full

parole Parole (also known as provisional release or supervised release) is a form of early release of a prison inmate where the prisoner agrees to abide by certain behavioral conditions, including checking-in with their designated parole officers, or ...

, a conditional release that allows an offender to serve part of a prison sentence in the community, though he was forbidden from returning to Altona. A documentary about the murder, '' Altona'', premiered in 2023 at the Whistler Film Festival, winning the Best Documentary. Giesbrecht, although not appearing on camera, agreed to an interview which was transcribed and read by an actor in the documentary.

References

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External links

https://amp.cbc.ca/listen/live-radio/1-29/clip/16027776
''Information Radio - MB with Marcy Markusa: A true crime documentary highlighting a decades old horrific murder in Altona is now streaming'', December 5, 2023 1990 murders in Canada Canadian murderers of children Child murder in Canada LGBT history in Canada Murder in Manitoba