'We thought of each other as brothers': Friend of victim testifies at Calgary murder trial
A friend of an 18-year-old who was pepper sprayed, stabbed and beaten at a southeast basketball court in September testified Monday at the trial for one of two teenage brothers charged in the killing.
The pair are accused in the death of Danillo Canales Glenn on Sept. 5, 2023, Calgary's 13th homicide victim that year.
Tanner DeGroot, 18, testified he'd known Canales Glenn since middle school and had just celebrated graduation with his friend that summer.
"We thought of each other as brothers instead of friends," he told the court.
- Sign up for breaking news alerts from CTV News, right at your fingertips
- The information you need to know, sent directly to you: Download the CTV News App
DeGroot says he met up with Canales Glenn mid-afternoon and grabbed a bite to eat before they met up with another friend Caden Langdon, who testified last week, to play basketball.
He says there was a group of about 10 younger kids, between eight and 12 years old, also playing when the attack happened.
"Can you tell us what occurred?" Crown prosecutor Vicki Faulkner asked him.
"The murder of my friend Danillo Canales Glenn occurred," he said firmly, looking directly at the accused who looked down at this lap.
DeGroot said he and his friends had only been playing ball for around 30 minutes when two people approached them and were "eyeballing Danillo" in a "suspicious way."
He says his friend said, "what are you looking at?" and said the pair charged into the court.
DeGroot said he tried to deescalate the situation but he and Langdon fled after the bear spray went off and said he lost his glasses when he ran away.
He said Canales Glenn tried to fight back but was stabbed and then the attackers fled.
DeGroot said he called 911 and tried to save his friend's life.
Prior to the testimony, Justice Eleanor J. Funk warned the gallery that no glaring or staring at the witness would be tolerated.
"This is a serious place and a somber place and I expect everyone to be appropriately behaved," she warned, citing previous court hearings where some of the people in the courtroom who support the two brothers accused were disruptive.
The 17-year-old on trial was 16 at the time and can't be named due to provisions under the Youth Criminal Justice Act.
His brother was 18 years old at the time and is facing a separate trial but can't be identified because doing so would identify his sibling.
The trial is scheduled to run until June 28.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Biden and Harris call the Israeli strike killing Hezbollah’s Nasrallah a 'measure of justice'
The Israeli strike that killed Hezbollah's Hassan Nasrallah was a 'measure of justice' for victims of a four-decade 'reign of terror,' U.S. President Joe Biden said Saturday.
LGBTQ2S+ minister Pascale St-Onge to make history with parental leave
Canadian Heritage Minister Pascale St-Onge is set to make history by becoming the first openly lesbian cabinet minister to take parental leave when her wife gives birth in the coming weeks.
SpaceX launches rescue mission for 2 NASA astronauts who are stuck in space until next year
SpaceX launched a rescue mission for the two stuck astronauts at the International Space Station on Saturday, sending up a downsized crew to bring them home but not until next year.
Scientists discover hidden ancient forest on treeless island
Trees haven't grown on the Falkland Islands for thousands of years. But tree trunks and branches preserved in peat suggest the islands were once home to a forest.
At least 52 dead and millions without power after Helene's deadly march across southeastern U.S.
Hurricane Helene caused at least 52 deaths and billions of dollars of destruction across a wide swath of the southeastern U.S. as it raced through, and more than three million customers went into the weekend without any power and for some a continued threat of floods.
What is open and closed this National Day for Truth and Reconciliation
This Monday, Sept. 30 is the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation (NDTR), a federal statutory holiday and day of remembrance for the Indigenous children who never came home from Canadian residential schools, as well as those who survived them.
They hit it off on vacation but then he went silent. So she decided to pick up the phone
When a few weeks passed and Nana Prempeh still hadn’t heard from the guy she met on vacation, she turned to her friends for advice.
Sima Sistani, who embraced Ozempic, is out as CEO of WeightWatchers
WeightWatchers CEO Sima Sistani, who pushed the company into embracing weight-loss drugs, is leaving the position after a two-and-a-half year stint.
Russia invokes its nuclear capacity in a UN speech that's full of bile toward the West
Russia's top diplomat warned Saturday against 'trying to fight to victory with a nuclear power,' delivering a UN General Assembly speech packed with condemnations of what Russia sees as Western machinations in Ukraine and elsewhere — including inside the United Nations itself.