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Radio-Canada Feature being tested Log inCreate my account Voice synthesis, based on artificial intelligence, allows you to generate text spoken from a written text. Saskatchewan man Michael MacKaya pleaded guilty to second-degree murder for poisoning his wife, Cindy MacKay, Monday in the Court of King's Bench in Battleford. He was sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole for 10 years. Some time earlier, Michael MacKay had indicated to the police that his wife had probably committed suicide. However, the truth is that he had instead hidden a lethal dose of poison in a drink of Gatorade. Cindy MacKay fell ill at home on February 7, 2020. She died a few days later in hospital. For the members of the victim's family, the conclusion of the hearing allowed the truth to be put forward. It’s been almost 4 years since Cindy was murdered. Today we finally get justice. The terrible things Michael did to her are finally being told, said Cindy's brother, Tyler Mack. He told a lot of lies about what happened to Cindy. It's a relief for all of us, he adds. As Michael MacKay pleaded guilty, there was no trial . Cindy and Michael Mackay married in 2005, after they met in a church in Saskatoon. They had three children. In 2015, the couple moved to Cindy's family farm, where she grew up. After moving to a rural area, Cindy Mackay continued to work as a registered nurse until her youngest daughter suffered an accident. After this accident, she became a full-time caregiver, while Michael took care of the farm.
Cindy MacKay was murdered by her husband in February 2020.
When Cindy Mackay indicated that she was not feeling well on the morning of February 7, Michael MacKay brought two of their children to school.
When he returned, he prepared a mixture of Gatorade powder combined with a quantity of strychnine, a product used on the farm to control pests.
Moments after ingesting the beverage, Cindy found herself in serious condition, screaming in pain and arching her back from muscle contractions.
Michael MacKay then called the emergency services. Cindy was taken to Battleford Hospital and then to a hospital in Saskatoon, but her condition never improved and she died on February 12, 2020.
Hospital care staff indicated that the death appeared suspicious. At this point, Michael suggested to authorities that it may have been a suicide.
The prosecutor Oryn Holm said murder by strychnine poisoning is very rare.
There was no direct evidence, such as eyewitness testimony. Instead, the Crown built its theory under a set of suspicious circumstances to ultimately charge Michael MacKay with first degree murder.
He ultimately pleaded guilty to murder in the second degree.
I recognize my many failings as a husband and father. I want the court to know that I am truly sorry, Michael MacKay said during the hearing Monday.
If the life of this Mackay family seemed typical, investigators discovered alarming signs in Michael MacKay after Cindy's death.
Michael MacKay had foreshadowed what Cindy's fate would be with the women he knew.
In December 2019, he told an acquaintance that he would need somewhere to keep a low profile in February 2020.
In addition, he had started having sex with a woman he met on a dating site. On February 6, he inquired about Cindy's state of health, to which he replied that a goodbye would surely be said in the coming days.
With information from Kendall Latimer