Date set for Ibrahim Ali to be sentenced for teen girl's murder

A date has been set for Ibrahim Ali to be sentenced for the first-degree murder of a 13-year-old girl whose body was found in a Burnaby, B.C., park almost seven years ago.

The sentencing hearing will begin on June 7 in B.C. Supreme Court and will carry on the following Monday, if necessary, according to a spokesperson for the B.C. Prosecution Service – who says Crown was "hoping it would have been scheduled sooner." The availability of an interpreter for Ali, an emailed statement from the BCPS said, was the reason an earlier date could not be set.

A jury convicted Ali of first-degree murder on Dec. 8, 2023 after deliberating for fewer than 24 hours after an eight-month-long trial.

The defence did not introduce any evidence or call any witnesses, instead arguing that the Crown had failed to prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt. The Crown told the court that Ali sexually assaulted the girl before strangling her to death.

Earlier this month, a judge dismissed a so-called Jordan application in which Ali's lawyers argued his conviction should be stayed because his right to be tried in a reasonable time was violated. The court also rejected Ali's bid to attend the sentencing virtually, an accommodation his counsel argued he was seeking out of concern for his safety.

The victim in the case cannot be named due to a publication ban. Her body was found in Burnaby's Central Park in July of 2017.