Convicted killer sentenced for 2022 death of prominent Simcoe County realtor
Warning: Readers may find details in this story to be distressing or triggering.
A man convicted of killing a prominent Collingwood realtor in June 2022 has been sentenced in a Barrie courtroom one month after pleading guilty.
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John Edward Collins, initially charged with first-degree murder, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in the death of his former lover, 55-year-old Kinga 'Kay' Kriston in December.
During his trial, the court heard Collins had joined Kriston in bed on June 4, 2022, at her Collingwood home before "he snapped" and struck her multiple times with a golf club as she screamed and pleaded with him.
In an agreed statement of facts, the court heard the then 57-year-old intoxicated man also punched her multiple times before the scuffle moved to the floor, where he strangled her.
Collins stayed in the Alyssa Drive home with her body for five days before a friend of Kriston went to check on her, found the gruesome scene, and alerted the authorities.
The court heard that when officers arrived, Collins appeared drunk and confessed, saying he was "totally guilty," and wanted to go to jail.
Last month, the court heard victim impact statements from Kriston's family, including her ex-husband, who told the court how their daughter never got to share the news with her mom about being accepted to university.
Her family and friends in attendance for Tuesday's sentencing said they were not ready to speak about the pain of losing her.
The Crown and defence jointly asked that Collins, who automatically receives a life sentence for pleading guilty to second-degree murder, be ineligible to apply for parole for 16 years.
Justice Michelle Fuerst agreed, adding, "The assault on Ms. Kriston was particularly vicious," noting Collins knew he was "taking the life of the mother of a teenaged child," and "took steps to ensure she would not survive."
As part of his sentencing, the judge imposed a lifetime weapons ban against Collins.
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