Two men accused of killing a First Nations woman have learned their fates. In 2022, Jayden Elijah from London and Michael Joseph from Brantford were charged with first-degree murder and committing an indignity to a body in the death of 56-year-old Ruth Longboat. However, on Wednesday, they both pleaded guilty to weapons charges and accessory after the fact to murder. Longboat’s body was found in the Humber River in Toronto in early March 2022. The two men were arrested the next day. An agreed statement of facts said “Mr. Joseph and Mr. Elijah dumped Ms. Longboat’s body in the Humber River at approximately 9:30 a.m.” The statement said Longboat was killed on the Six Nations reserve, and her body was then taken to Toronto. “Mr. Joseph and Mr. Elijah disposed of Ms. Longboat’s body for the purpose of helping the individual or individuals who murdered Ms. Longboat escape liability,” it continued. “A pain we will carry for the rest of our lives” Victim impact statements from Longboat’s family were read aloud in a Brant County Superior Court of Justice courtroom on Wednesday. “Our family has lost a mother, grandmother, sister, aunt and cousin,” they said. “She was nurturing, thoughtful, warm and giving.” The statements said the family continues to grieve, and the manner of her death is “a pain we will carry for the rest of our lives.” Sentencing submission A joint sentencing submission asked the judge in the case to consider the time the men have already served behind bars and their Indigenous upbringings. It also noted Joseph did not have a criminal record at the time of Longboat’s death. Elijah, meanwhile, has a “fairly lengthy record that started in his youth.” The judge accepted the men’s guilty pleas and, due to time served since his arrest in 2022, Joseph walked free on Wednesday. Elijah will spend one more day in custody. Both have been banned from owning weapons and they must provide their DNA to Six Nations Police.
