Kuujjuaq man’s murder conviction overturned on appeal

A Kuujjuaq man will get a new murder trial after Quebec’s Court of Appeal overturned his conviction earlier this month.

A jury convicted Randy Koneak of first-degree murder and indignity to human remains four years ago in the 2018 gun killing of Chloé Labrie, a 28-year-old medical technician who had been working in Kuujjuaq for four years.

Superior Court of Quebec judge Guy de Blois sentenced Koneak to life in prison in December 2020 with no chance of parole for 25 years.

Chloé Labrie, 28, was killed in her Kuujjuaq home early June 12, 2018. (Photo Courtesy of Grégoire & Desrochers)

Koneak, who was then 22, was accused of shooting Labrie twice while she was alone at home, killing her instantly, then sexually assaulting her.

He testified that he recalled drinking, smoking cannabis and using cocaine early that evening but didn’t remember much after. A police officer testified Koneak confessed to the crime.

In a decision, written in French and dated Dec. 11, 2024, appeal court judge Simon Ruel wrote that de Blois erred in his instructions to the jury.

Ruel said de Blois did not isolate specific facts of the case and link them to the legal test needed to demonstrate that the killing was premeditated and deliberate — key factors in determining guilt of first-degree murder.

As a result, the jury was not properly equipped to make its decision.

It’s unacceptable for anyone to spend their life in prison without a fair and equitable trial, said Maude Pagé-Arpin, Koneak’s lawyer, in an email written in French.

Koneak’s next court date has not yet been set, Pagé-Arpin said.