Jailed for 4 years, Scottish soldier who killed man in ‘vicious’ Canadian bar brawl

By STUART MACDONALD

Published: 20:05 BST, 11 June 2025 | Updated: 20:08 BST, 11 June 2025

A Scots soldier has been sentenced to more than four years in prison for killing a man in a bar in Canada.

Corporal Craig Gibson, 30, struck Brett Sheffield three times with an elbow to the head and neck that later resulted in his death.

Mr Sheffield, a 38-year-old businessman from Winnipeg, Manitoba, was left critically injured in the attack at a Toronto pub on August 28, 2023. He died two days later in hospital.

Gibson, of Dalry, Ayrshire, had pleaded not guilty to a charge of manslaughter at Ontario Superior Court of Justice but was found guilty following a trial in December.

The dad-of-one, who was originally charged with second-degree murder, has now been sentenced to four years and four months imprisonment.

The soldier, who had served in Iraq and Afghanistan with 4 Scots, known as the Highlanders, was in Canada to take part in a military exercise.

He has been dishonourably discharged from the Army following his conviction.

CCTV footage from the Locals Only bar was played to the jury at Gibson’s trial. It showed the soldier, who was wearing a kilt and Toronto Blue Jays shirt, striking his victim while the pair were standing at the bar.

Corporal Craig Gibson was sent to prison for killing a man in a bar in Canada

Brett Sheffield, 38, died in hospital two days after the assault.

Mr Sheffield was on a business trip with colleagues when he started talking to the Scot.

Their exchanges were initially good-natured but after a disagreement arose Gibson hit Mr Sheffield with his elbow three times.

A forensic pathologist testified that the cause of death was a ruptured artery in his neck caused by blunt-force trauma.

Gibson claimed he thought Mr Sheffield was going to stab him during the altercation.

He told the court: ‘I had seen his hand backing up. At the time I was certain he had a knife.’

However, a jury rejected his claim that he had acted in self-defence.

The trial in Toronto heard how Gibson had drank several shots of whisky as he partied with around a dozen other squaddies in the city before the drunken bust-up.

Addressing Mr Sheffield’s family in court, Gibson, who has no previous convictions, said: ‘I’m deeply sorry. Mr Sheffield did not deserve to die.

‘It’s something I have to live with for the rest of my life.’

Sentencing Gibson, Judge Justice Katherine Corrick said what happened was not a bar fight but a ‘vicious assault with tragic consequences’.

Prosecutors had recommended a six-and-a-half-year sentence in the case while Gibson’s defence team had asked for a jail term of between two and three years.

A tribute was paid to Mr Sheffield online by his colleagues at NextGen Drainage, a firm he founded.

They said: ‘Brett Sheffield passed away on August 30 due to a random act of violence. His absence is felt deeply across the community, our company, and his vast network of friends and colleagues.

‘Brett’s passion for helping every person feel valued and cared for will continue to motivate us.’

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Jailed for 4 years, Scottish soldier who killed man in ‘vicious’ Canadian bar brawl

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