The sentencing of the man who pleaded guilty in the deadly hit-and-run in Kitsilano two years ago began on Friday.
Alexandre Romero-Arata was escorted into the Vancouver courtroom on Friday morning, where he was scheduled to hear his sentence in the death of 24-year-old Irish national Eoghan Byrne on June 19, 2022.
The Byrne family arrived in Vancouver from Ireland to read their victim impact statements to not only Romero-Arata, but also members of his family.
Crown attorney Mark Myhre began by reading aloud the statement from Byrne’s friend Mike McGovern, who was with Byrne that evening in June 2022.
In the statement, McGovern tells the court that he suffers from severe symptoms of PTSD, has vivid flashbacks, and contemplates taking his own life as a result of watching his friend being killed in front of him.
“Eoghan disappeared before my eyes,” said McGovern.
“I screamed in shock and horror.”
Videos played in the courtroom – filmed by a friend from inside Romero-Arata’s …