Verdict coming May 17 in case of accused letter bomber Guido Amsel

A court decision is expected next month over who sent a letter bomb to a downtown law firm in 2015 that exploded and left a Winnipeg lawyer seriously injured.

Judge Tracey Lord will deliver her verdict in the R v. Amselcase on Thursday, May 17, at 2 p.m. CT.

Guido Amsel, 51, wasarrested in July 2015after packages containing bombs were mailed to his ex-wife Iris and two law firms tied to an ongoing civil dispute.

Amselis charged with five counts of attempted murder, one count of aggravated assaultand several explosives-related offences in connection to the three bomb packages, and aDecember 2013 explosionat his ex-wife's home in the rural municipality of St.Clements. No one wasinjured in latter incident.

Two of the bomb packages from 2015were safely detonated by police, but a third went off in the hands of Winnipeg lawyerMariaMitousis.

• A look back at the Guido Amsel case as court hears closing arguments in case this week

Mitousis, IrisAmsel'slawyerat the time,was seriously injured and lost her right hand after she pushed a button on atape recorder that had been sent to her River Avenue office July 3, 2015.The tape recorder was a home-made explosive device.

The trial lasted nearly eight weeks, withtestimony from dozens of witnesses.

While cameras are generally not allowed in Manitoba courtrooms, exceptions are made for certain high-profile cases; this is one such case, and there will be a live broadcast as the judge renders her decision.

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