Canadian man who tried to kill American woman he met online sentenced to life in U.S.

A police officer ties tape around a light pole in Monterey Park, Calif., Sunday, Jan. 22, 2023. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

A Canadian man who tried to kill an American woman he met via online gaming has been given two consecutive life sentences in prison.

Earlier this year, Devin Wolfgang Vanderhoef was found guilty of burglary and attempted murder.

His trial heard the 26-year-old from North Vancouver posed as a delivery driver and forced his way into the woman’s home in Monterey County, Calif., in November 2024.

Monterey County District Attorney Jeannine Pacioni says he stabbed the woman’s boyfriend and later strangled the woman.

Pacioni says Vanderhoef planned the attack for a month before flying to California and said his plan was to “actually kill someone.”

The trial also heard from Vanderhoef’s friend, who travelled with him to California and later pleaded guilty to assault by means of force and being an accessory after the fact.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 26, 2026.

Aaron Sousa, The Canadian Press