Calgary drug dealer who directed fatal attack pleads guilty to manslaughter
Remains of Keanan Crane, 22, found west of Calgary
A Calgary drug dealer pleaded guilty to manslaughter Friday, admitting he gave a nod that initiated a fatal beating, drugging and dismemberment of a young man who owed him $300.
Darren Bulldog's second-degree murder trial was to begin Monday, but negotiations between defence lawyer Anna Konye and prosecutors Aaron Rankin and Britta Kristensen led to Friday's plea.
Keanan Crane was fatally attacked on April 7, 2022. Parts of his dismembered body were found a month later on the Mînî Thnî First Nation, formerly known as Morley.
Court of King's Bench Justice David Labrenz will hear sentencing arguments in May.
An agreed statement of facts detailing the crime was read by Rankin.
'His pleas were ignored'
Court heard that in 2022, Crane had spiralled into drug addiction after the death of his grandmother, who had raised him.
By April 2022, Crane was homeless and dealing drugs for Bulldog but had lost some of the product and owed Bulldog about $300.
On the night he was killed, Crane showed up at the home of Jason Tait, along with two friends. Several people were at Tait's home at the time.
Shortly after the victim arrived, Bulldog confronted him about the debt and then "signalled" to the others in the room, who began to assault the 22-year-old.
In a separate trial, prosecutors suggested Tait and Bulldog were expecting Crane, and that Bulldog gave a nod to initiate the attack.
As he was being kicked, Crane begged to speak with Bulldog about the money but, according to the agreed statement of facts, "his pleas were ignored."
The attackers bound Bulldog's hands and feet with duct tape and then administered a "hot shot" — a lethal dose of fentanyl.
Crane's body was then taken to a bathroom, where he was dismembered.
During the attack, Crane's two friends were prevented from leaving and their cellphones were taken from them. They were also "threatened with violence if they spoke about what they saw," according to the agreed statement of facts.
Bulldog attempted to intimidate witness
Bulldog forced the pair to write down their addresses.
A month later, some of Crane's remains were found west of the city. In the same area, police found a cigarette butt with Bulldog's DNA on it.
Last month, Tait was convicted of accessory after the fact to murder and has yet to be sentenced.
In the weeks after the attack, Bulldog showed up at the home of Crane's friend and "attempted to intimidate [the man] into not speaking to anyone" about the killing.
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