Three men charged in connection with the killing of a beloved Owen Sound, Ont., restaurateur have agreed to be extradited from Scotland to stand trial in Canada.
Robert Evans, 25, faces a manslaughter charge, while his father, Robert Busby Evans, 47, and his uncle Barry Evans, 54, are charged with being accessories after the fact.
The trio could be flown to Canada shortly, said Robert Currie, a professor of transnational criminal law at Dalhousie University.
“It’s just a matter of everybody signing off and an agreement being made between Canada and the UK about what the terms of the surrender of these individuals are going to be, and where that is going to happen,” Currie said.
“It could be weeks, or even days. It’s a much shorter process than if it was a contested extradition.”
The three men appeared in Edinburgh Sheriff Court on Monday morning, where they agreed to be brought to Canada to answer to the criminal charges. Lawyers had previously indicated the men would fight extradition on the grounds that conditions in Ontario jails were so bad they would violate the men’s human rights.
The Curry House owner Sharif Rahman died in August 2023 in a London, Ont., hospital after being punched outside the Owen Sound restaurant when he confronted customers who were skipping out on a bill, police have said.
On Monday, the men verbally acknowledged that they understood their consent is irrevocable and that they’ll remain in custody in Scotland until they’re sent to Canada to stand trial. Scottish Sheriff Julius Komorowski read aloud a letter from Canadian authorities dated Oct. 3, 2025.
The letter states that, should the men be found guilty, the Crown will recommend that time spent in Scottish custody awaiting extradition be deducted from any sentence they get. “Whether the judge agrees and reduces the sentence accordingly is not something we can promise; but the Crown will make the submission,” the letter states.
Busby Evans appeared first at 11:30 a.m. He was clean-shaven and dressed in a dark blue sweater.
His advocate informed the court that Busby Evans was prepared to consent to extradition to Canada. In a process that would be repeated for Busby Evans’s son, Robert, and brother Barry, Komorowski requested the consent statement in writing, watched as the defendant signed, then read it aloud and asked him to verbally confirm his understanding.
Robert Evans came next , at 11:42 a.m., after being brought up from holding in a long-sleeved blue shirt. A woman in the gallery wept openly as he signed and submitted his consent. She fled the courtroom sobbing as he was handcuffed and remanded back into custody.
Barry Evans entered the court at 11:51 a.m., in a long-sleeved black shirt.
None of the family members wanted to comment outside of court.
Legally, Canada and the UK have worked together on law enforcement operations for many years, and the extradition proceedings were not surprising, Currie said. “It’s not unusual for someone to not fight the extradition,” he said. “That can happen for a number of reasons.”
A person might realize their extradition fight is unlikely to succeed, so they agree to shorten the process and get on with it, Currie said. “Other times it can be part of a plea agreement, or a person simply doesn’t have enough money to fight the thing.”
It’s not known why the three men consented to extradition in this case. It’s also not clear whether a report on Ontario jail conditions, previously requested by Komorowski, was every filed.
When they arrive in Canada, the men will be treated just like any other criminal defendants awaiting trial, Currie said. “There’s no special treatment for foreign nationals, other than they’re entitled to get assistance from their own government, from the embassy or the consulate or High Commission.”
Little had been known about the three men charged until CBC News won access to Scottish court files and used information in affidavits supplied by Canadian police to unearth their social media profiles.
Images of accused uncovered
In December 2024, police announced there had been three arrests — months before, in Edinburgh. But they provided no details beyond the names and ages of the accused — a father, son and uncle — who remain in custody in Scotland, pending the hearing that had been set to begin on Oct. 20 on Canada’s request for extradition.
The CBC News investigation uncovered images of the three men by tracing social media profiles and verifying them by geolocating photos, tracing family and friend groups, and cross-referencing posted details like birthdays and vacations.
Police allege that Robert Evans Jr. threw the punch that felled Rahman. According to witness statements, the restaurateur’s head hit the pavement with a sound likened to a dropped bowling ball.
Barry Evans faces an accessory after the fact charge for reportedly instructing Evans Jr. to “run,” then driving him to Collingwood, an hour away.
Robert Evans Sr., who wasn’t at the restaurant, has also been charged as an accessory for allegedly buying an airline ticket for his son and arranging for his transport to Toronto’s Pearson International Airport.
Police say Evans Jr. departed on a flight to Heathrow airport in the U.K. on Aug 18, 2023, the day after the altercation in Owen Sound. The uncle and another family member, who was at The Curry House but has not been charged, left that same evening on a flight to Glasgow. Evans Sr. followed a few days later, travelling to Manchester.
According to the Scottish court files, Evans Jr. and Sr. entered Canada as visitors in early June 2023, using valid U.K. passports with fake names — Michael and Justin Jones.
They didn’t have work visas. But police say the Evans family spent the summer criss-crossing the province, operating a cash-only business called Total Paving.
The documents identify the family as part of the U.K.’s “traveller” community. A number of those tight-knit clans have been flagged by authorities for operating driveway repair scams that span the globe.
The court did not give an extradition date.
