Calgary man guilty of execution-style murder of 2 fellow drug dealers

A Calgary man has been found guilty of murdering two men, both of whom he shot "at point blank range" as they sat, unsuspecting, in the front seats of an SUV, a Calgary judge has ruled.

Christopher Naidu was convicted oftwo counts of first-degree murder in the April 2018 deaths of fellow drug dealers Joshua Brendan Bamfo, 25, and Mahad Abdiraham Ainanshe, 23.

Court of Queen's Bench Justice Jim Eamon found Naiduplanned the killing of the two victims and "shot them at point blank range to their heads and neck area."

"There's no reasonable possibility that Mr. Naidu happened to have his loaded gun at a meet-up with his business partners and used it on impulse," said Eamon in delivering his decision.

After Eamon convicted Naidu, the killer sat in the prisoner's box shaking his head.

• Double murder motivated by drug client list, prosecution alleges at trial

During the trial, the judge heard that the three men sold drugs together, sharing a cellphone containing a client list of about 100 names and numbers.

Naidu was supposed to have the phone every Friday and Saturday but one of the victims had recently kept the phone on the killer's assigned days.

The Crown said in its opening statement that Bamfo and Ainanshe "were killed for the list,"said prosecutor ToddBuziak on Day 1 of the trial last month.

Victims 'not expecting a threat of violence'

On April 20, 2018, just after 3 p.m., police were called to the northwest neighbourhood of Evanston after neighbours reported hearing gunshots.

The two victims were found dead in a Nissan SUV. Bamfo's legs were up, casually resting on the dashboard of the vehicle, suggesting he had no idea what Naidu was planning.

"[They were] not expecting a threat of violence, rather it was a meet-up," said Eamon.

Following a 14-month investigation, Naidu was arrested andcharged.

A date for sentencing will be set next week. Naidu faces a life sentence with no chance of parole for between 25 and 50 years.

Prosecutors have not yet indicated whether they will seek consecutive parole ineligibility periods.