Man found guilty of killing Calgary Stampeder appeals conviction and sentence

CALGARY — A man convicted of killing a Calgary Stampeders football player is appealing his conviction and his sentence.

Nelson Lugela was found guilty earlier this year of second-degree murder in the death of Mylan Hicks and was given life in prison with no chance of parole for 18 years.

Hicks, a 23-year-old player on the practice roster of the Canadian Football League team, was shot twice outside Calgary’s Marquee Beer Market in 2016.

Lugela, who has applied for legal aid, filed the appeal on his own behalf.

He says the trial judge who convicted him erred in accepting some witness testimony.

Lugela also complains that the sentence was “extremely brutal in light of circumstantial evidence.”

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The Canadian Press