A Fort Good Hope, NWT man has pleaded guilty to manslaughter for killing another resident last summer.

Floyd Kakfwi, 53, charged with second degree murder In late July, more than a month after he stabbed Harley Pierrot, who died from his injuries.

In Yellowknife on Friday, Kakfwi’s defense attorney, Evan McIntyre, told the court that Kakfwi waived his right to a trial by pleading guilty to involuntary manslaughter and agreed that the conviction would be added to his criminal record.

An agreed statement of facts read into the court record by prosecutor Brendan Green said Kakfwi and Pierrot had been drinking at Kakfwi’s home on June 15. An argument broke out between them, leading to a fight when Pierrot refused to leave. Kakfwi then stabbed Pierrot with a kitchen knife.

Pierrot died in hospital on 28 June.

At the time of the stabbing, RCMP charged Kakfwi with aggravated assault. However, that same day, a nearby forest fire triggered the evacuation of Good Hope Castle.

Family members later told CBC they were concerned the release may have interfered with the police investigation.

Green told CBC that the Crown carefully considered the evidence and reached a reasonable solution; This was a plea for the lesser manslaughter charge, which the defense accepted.

Manslaughter has a minimum penalty only if a firearm is used. The maximum penalty is life imprisonment.

The court will reconvene at Good Hope Castle in June 2025 to hand down the sentence.