Third man sentenced for 2023 killing of Burnaby 19-year-old during home invasion

Homicide victim Ryan Nagy is seen in this photo provided by IHIT.

The third of four men who pleaded guilty to manslaughter for their roles in a deadly Burnaby home invasion has been sentenced.

Ousmane Keita was sentenced to six years in prison for his role in the killing of 19-year-old Ryan Nagy on June 29, 2023. B.C. Supreme Court Justice Edlyn Laurie issued her reasons for sentencing on June 12, and they were published online Friday.

After credit for time spent in custody before his release on bail, Keita has five years and nine and a half months left to serve.

Along with three other men—Rhoda Diabikulu, Rais Usman and Ali Shamkhi—Keita broke into Nagy’s family home on 17th Avenue around 6:30 a.m.

The home invaders planned to steal firearms that belonged to Nagy’s father and were kept in a safe in the basement.

“The intruders drove to the Nagy residence in a vehicle that had a stolen licence plate,” Laurie’s decision reads. “They wore dark clothing and balaclavas. They brought knives, duct tape, and zip ties with them.”

After breaking into the home, Keita, Diabikulu and Shamki went upstairs to the bedroom where Nagy and his girlfriend were asleep. No one else who lived in the home was present at the time.

“A struggle ensued,” according to the decision.

“Mr. Keita held Ryan Nagy’s body down. Ryan Nagy was struck multiple times and stabbed four times in the thigh and once in the chest. The stab wound in the chest was fatal.”

The intruders bound the couple with duct tape and zip ties and dragged them to the basement.

“Ryan Nagy was not conscious at the time,” the decision reads. “He was either dead or dying from being stabbed in the chest. The intruders attempted to wake him by splashing water on his face.”

The masked men were unable to open the safe. They fled the residence when Nagy’s father came home unexpectedly.

The four men were arrested and charged in September 2024, more than a year after the incident.

Shamkhi pleaded guilty to manslaughter and weapons offences in October 2025 and was sentenced to a total of 10.5 years in prison earlier this year.

Usman received a six-year sentence for manslaughter in April.

Diabikulu’s sentencing hearing began on June 11, the day after Keita’s, but it has not yet concluded, according to the B.C. Prosecution Service. The hearing is scheduled to resume on Sept. 1.

A refugee and a father

Keita’s six-year sentence was based on a joint submission from Crown and defence lawyers.

Laurie’s decision elaborates on the offender’s background as the judge weighs whether to accept the joint submission.

According to the decision, Keita was born in a refugee camp in Côte d’Ivoire and immigrated to Canada with his mother, grandmother, aunt and cousin in 2010.

He is 22 years old, and was 19 at the time of the offence, according to the decision.

“Mr. Keita graduated from high school and is presently working in construction,” Laurie’s decision reads, adding that he was living with his partner and her family when he committed the offence.

Keita and his partner have two daughters under the age of two, and he has been on bail with “strict” conditions since late October 2024, according to the decision.

“Mr. Keita has filed letters of support from family members including his mother, uncle, and (his partner),” the decision reads.

“The letters describe Mr. Keita as a loving father, hard worker and a caring and compassionate individual. Based on Mr. Keita’s personal circumstances and the contents of the support letters, I infer that his prospects for rehabilitation are good.”

He has expressed remorse for his actions, the decision notes. Laurie considered this, his guilty plea and his lack of a criminal record to be mitigating circumstances in the case.

There were also several aggravating circumstances, including the intruders’ use of a knife, their premeditation of the crime, the fact that it took place inside the Nagy residence, the fact that they made no attempt to provide medical assistance to Nagy and the fact that they burned their clothes after the crime to avoid detection by police.

The court also heard from those affected by the crime, including Nagy’s parents and his girlfriend.

The more than 30 victim impact statements described Nagy as “a kind, generous, respectful, loyal, talented, and promising young man,” according to Laurie’s decision, and they relayed the anguish his death has caused to those who knew him.

Nagy’s girlfriend described his death as “the most painful experience of her life,” the decision notes.

“She stated that the most difficult part to process was that Ryan Nagy knew the perpetrators, including Mr. Keita, and that he had shown Mr. Keita kindness and generosity,” it reads.

Weighing all these factors, Laurie concluded that she should accept the joint submission.

“In considering the totality of the circumstances in the case at bar, I am satisfied that the joint submission of six years custodial sentence is not one that would bring the administration of justice into disrepute or is otherwise contrary to the public interest,” the decision reads.

“The proposed sentence recognizes the gravity of the offence and the mitigating circumstances of the offender.”

In addition to his six-year prison sentence, Keita is subject to a DNA order, banned from possessing firearms for 10 years and prohibited from communicating directly or indirectly with members of Nagy’s family while incarcerated.