Jury finds Eric Wildman guilty of 1st-degree murder in 2021 killing of rural Manitoba neighbour

A man accused of killing his neighbour in rural Manitoba more than three years ago has been found guilty of first-degree murder by a jury following a weeks-long trial.

Eric Wildman, 38, pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder in the June 2021 death of 40-year-old Clifford Joseph. Joseph was reported missing that month, but his remains weren't found until over a month later.

Prosecutors said Wildman hit Joseph with his vehicle when he caught the victim trying to steal from his property on or around June 7, 2021, in the village of Stead, Man., about 80 kilometres northeast of Winnipeg, then took the injured man to another location where he executed him.

When Joseph's remains were finally found after a lengthy search, he had a broken leg and jaw. But prosecutors have said what killed him were three gunshots, including one to the back of the head.

Wildman didn't react as the verdict was delivered in a Winnipeg courtroom. Some of Joseph's relatives sitting in the public gallery could be heard crying.

"Mr. Wildman, you have been convicted of first-degree murder. As a result, you are to be sentenced to life imprisonment," Manitoba Court of King's Bench Justice Richard Saull told Wildman.

The conviction carries an automatic life sentence with no chance of parole for 25 years. A sentencing hearing, with a chance for family to read victim impact statements, will be held at a later date.

During closing arguments, Martin Glazer, one of Wildman's lawyers, had argued his client was wrongfully accused as part of an "absurd" theory prosecutors came up with based on a police investigation Glazer said was defined by tunnel vision.

Glazer told jurors there was no evidence Wildman ever even met the man he's accused of killing. He said the Crown's theory — that Wildman "suddenly becomes a cold-blooded murderer" who killed Joseph when the victim tried to steal what Glazer called "maybe a $50" trailer winch from his property — doesn't make any sense.

But Crown attorney Bryton Moen told jurors the timing in the case was of paramount importance — from how Wildman changed the hood on his damaged vehicle shortly after prosecutors say Joseph was hit by a vehicle then killed, to how Wildman left the province when police told him they were going to arrest him for murder.

On Wednesday morning, Saull gave jurors their instructions in the trial, which started last month and ended with closing arguments on Monday.

"It was a long time coming," Crown attorney Chris Vanderhooft said about the verdict. "We did this trial once before and it ended in a mistrial and so we had to do the whole whole thing again with the new jury.

"They were patient, obviously paid close attention to the evidence, and despite a complicated case in terms of circumstantial evidence, they arrived at the verdict we were suggesting. We're relieved for the family."

The first trial was adjourned and later declared a mistrial in June 2023 after Glazer experienced a medical issue. Wildman exercised his right not to continue in the trial without his lawyer.

At least one person from Joseph's family was present throughout the second trial, supported by Manitoba Justice victim services workers, Vanderhooft said.

"They were, after the verdict yesterday, I think quite emotional and relieved would be the word," he said. "They'll now have an opportunity to provide victim impact statements when we do the sentencing."

Plans to appeal

Glazer says they will appeal the jury's verdict.

"It's not the verdict we wanted, obviously," he told CBC News on Thursday evening.

Once Wildman is officially sentenced, the appeal process can begin, and a notice of appeal must be filed within 30 days of sentencing. 

Glazer says experience has taught him that an appeal can take one to two years before the hearing in court.

"This is just the first round. We're going to keep fighting, and as far as we're concerned, justice was not served," he said. "This is an injustice and my client maintains his innocence and maintains that he was wrongfully convicted."

Vanderhooft said the Crown intends to contest the appeal.

"Our position will be, as it was at the trial, that there's a solid conviction and a foundation in the evidence for that [finding]," he said.

Wildman was on the run and subject to a manhunt for days in 2021 before he was found at a home near Belleville, Ont., where police said officers were fired at when they attempted to enter.

Wildman was later charged with respect to that incident, and in November 2024 was convicted in an Ontario court of attempted murder with a firearm and possession of a restricted firearm with ammunition — information that was under a publication ban until after the jury in Wildman's murder trial delivered the verdict.