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Three Brits admit killing restaurant owner in Canada after 'unpaid bill' row

Morag KinniburghBBC Scotland
News imageCBC/Shayela Nasrin Sharif Rahman smiling straight at the camera. He is wearing a blue t shirt with the word 'Hurley' in white letters on the front. He has two straps from his backpack over his shoulders. He is standing in front of a tree-lined background with blue sky overhead.CBC/Shayela Nasrin
Sharif Rahman died after a row over an unpaid restaurant bill

Three British men have admitted killing a restaurant owner in Canada.

Robert Evans Jr, 25, pleaded guilty on Friday to the manslaughter of Sharif Rahman, 44, after a row over an unpaid restaurant bill in the town of Owen Sound in August 2023.

His father Robert Busby Evans, 49, and uncle Barry Evans, 56, pleaded guilty to being accessories to the crime and have been sentenced to time already served.

The three are believed to be from Manchester, but were extradited to Canada from Scotland last year. Evans Jr will be sentenced next month.

Local police told the BBC the two older men have been taken into the custody of the Canadian Border Agency for repatriation.

Rahman, a father of one, died a week after an alleged physical altercation with the Evans family in Owen Sound, about 118 miles (190km) from Toronto.

It was alleged the fight took place in the street outside a curry house following an argument over an unpaid $150 (£79) bill.

Rahman, originally from Bangladesh, was found in the street by a staff member and later died in hospital in London, Ontario.

At the time, Canadian media outlets reported the three were in the country on holiday visas and left a short time after the altercation.

More than a year later, Evans Jr and his father were arrested by Police Scotland in Edinburgh while his uncle was arrested in Dalkeith.

CBC, a partner of the BBC, reports the men are all originally from Manchester.

News imageGoogle The exterior of a restaurant called the Curry House, a brick building set between two shops.Google
The alleged attack took place outside a restaurant in Owen Sound

All three men gave their consent to extradition at separate hearings last October before Sheriff Julius Komorowski at Edinburgh Sheriff Court.

Defence agent Sarah Loosemore said Robert Busby Evans had decided "it would be appropriate for these matters to be dealt with under the Canadian justice system".

Similar confirmations were made with the two other men, with Sheriff Komorowski reminding them there was "no appeal" against their decision.

At a previous hearing, lawyers for the two older Evans family members argued there was "no equivalent act" to being an accessory to the alleged offence in Scots Law, and that extradition should be refused.

The BBC has also contacted the Ontario Courts Service and Canadian Border Agency.

'Beautiful human being'

Owen Sound is home to a population of about 22,000 people.

The town's mayor, Ian Boddy, described Rahman as a "wonderful, warm man" who was well known in the community.

He said: "He was very calm, gentle, just a beautiful human being who everybody liked, so it was a real shock to the community when it happened.

"I think the community is happy that it has finally been resolved and gone through court.

"I'm hoping the community remembers him and emulates him by showing that warmth and being kind to one another, always welcome people and support everyone, that is his legacy."