Father of murdered Granby girl pleads guilty to forcible confinement

The father of the 7-year-old girl who was killed in Granby two years ago pleaded guilty to forcibly confining his daughter in a case of abuse and neglect that shocked the province.

The father pleaded guilty on Monday, but his admission was kept under a publication ban until Wednesday morning.

Last week, a jury found the girl's stepmother guilty of second-degree murder and forcible confinement. Despite having heard evidence for weeks, it took the jury only a matters of hours to emerge with the verdicts.

The names of the victim, her father and stepmother are under publication bans.

A pathologist who testified in November during the stepmother's trial said the girl suffocated after being wrapped in tape, including over her nose and mouth.

The pathologist said there were no other signs of trauma that would explain the death.

The girl's father was scheduled to have a trial in January, but he opted to plead guilty to forcible confinement. The Crown asked that a stay of proceedings be placed on a charge of criminal negligence causing death.

Superior Court Justice François Huot accepted the guilty plea and placed the stay of proceedings. He lifted a publication ban on evidence heard during the stepmother's trial that incriminated the father. Throughout the stepmother's trial, media were not allowed to publish any evidence that pertained to the girl's father.

The same judge will hear sentencing arguments Jan. 7.

Sentencing arguments in the stepmother's case are scheduled to begin on Friday. She automatically received a life sentence when she was convicted of second-degree murder, but the judge will have to determine how long she has to spend behind bars before she is eligible for parole.