VANCOUVER, British Columbia — An actor who once appeared in an episode of the popular TV series “Riverdale,” was sentenced to spend the rest of his life behind bars for murdering his mother.
Ryan Grantham pleaded guilty to second-degree murder for killing his mother, which comes with an automatic life sentence, CBC reported. B.C. Supreme Court Justice Kathleen Ker called the case “tragic” and “heartbreaking” as she ruled Grantham would not be eligible for parole for 14 years.
Grantham’s mother, Barbara Waite, was shot in the back of the head while she played piano in their townhome in March 2020, The Independent reported. Prosecutors said Grantham made a video using a GoPro camera where he confessed to the murder and showed the body inside the home, CBC reported.
The next day, Grantham covered the body with a sheet and lit candles around it before leaving in a car packed with guns, ammunition, Molotov cocktails, camping supplies and a map to Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s residence, The Independent reported. Prosecutors told the outlet that Grantham had written in his diary about his plans to kill Trudeau.
Prosecutors said that Grantham made it to Hope before turning around and considering a mass shooting at Simon Fraser University, where he was enrolled, CBC reported. Later that night, he drove to Vancouver Police Department, where he turned himself in.
Police told The Independent that when he arrived at the police station, he told an officer, “I killed my mother.” In a psychiatric report, Grantham is listed as telling an expert he wanted to kill his mother so that she wouldn’t witness the violence he had been planning.
Grantham has 37 credits to his name on IMDb.com, including a role in a 2019 episode of the CW television series “Riverdale,” roles on the CW show “Supernatural” and a role in the 2010 movie “Diary of a Wimpy Kid.”
Grantham was nominated for a best actor Leo Award for his role in the 2012 movie “Becoming Redwood,” the Vancouver Sun reported.
Grantham had addressed the court on the final day of his sentencing hearing, saying: “I cannot explain or justify my actions. I have no excuse. It hurts me to think about how badly I’ve wasted my life. In the face of something so horrible, saying sorry seems so pointless. But from every fiber of my being, I am sorry,” CBC reported.
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