Father of alleged killer John Ostamas praying for victims' families

The father of a man charged with killing three vulnerable men in downtown Winnipeg says he is praying for the victims' families.

"I feel sorry for them," said Donald Ostamusbyphone."I keep praying for those people that got hurt, especially the family.The family members who lost their loved ones.I keep praying for them."

Ostamussays he was in the woodswhen he got a call on his cell saying his son was charged with murder.

"I got shocked, you know," he said. Ostamus currently lives in Kasabonika Lake First Nation, which is about 450 kilometres northeast of Sioux Lookout, Ont. He is a carpenter whose first language is Ojibway.

John Paul Ostamas, 39, has been charged with two counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of Stony Stanley Bushie, 48, and Donald Collins, 65, whose bodies were found in back alleys near Portage Avenue and Hargrave Street last weekend.

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Ostamas has also been charged with second-degree murder in the death of 37-year-old Miles Monias, who was found beaten inside a bus shelter on Main Street and Pioneer Avenue on April 10.

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Ostamasalso has an extensive criminal past in Ontario.

Ostamus says he is not sure how his son came to face so many charges over the years.

"I talked to him once in a while when he was on the phone and told him to go home and stay home and find something to do," Ostamus said, referring to the fact his son was often transient and homeless.

Ostamus said his son "liked to play around with the other kids" when he was a child, and enjoyed reading and writing.

"He was doing okay when he was young, you know?" he said, "He likes to help out, cut wood, all that stuff, when he was young. He likes to do things, wash dishes, wash the floor, clean the house.That's what he did all the time.I don't know why he took off with it. He took off and never looked back to doing those things again.I guess he just gave up and wanted to run around."

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John Ostamas is the second youngest child of four brothers and one sister, who all grew up inEabametoongFirst Nation in northwestern Ontario, also known as Fort Hope. His mother passed away in 2002.

Donald Ostamus says he moved to another northern community, Kasabonika Lake First Nation, for work in 2005.He believes John was still in Eabametoong at the time, and does not know exactly when he left the home.The two men spell their last names differently.

The last time Ostamus saw his son was about two summers ago.He said the two spoke by phone about once a month, and estimates they have spoken twice this year.

Ostamus could not say if his son was experiencing mental health or addictions issues as an adult.

"I guess when he was younger he had a problem with sniffing gas. You know kids they do that ... trying to get high," he said.

He added John Ostamas had also been homeless in Toronto and New York City,adding he believed his son had been homeless for about 10years.

He's not sure if he will be able to make it to Winnipeg for any of his son's court appearances because of the cost involved.

But he does have questions for his son.

"What happened to you?" he asked, "What came over you?"