Stephan Dietrich will have to wait at least 22 years before he can apply for parole.
That’s after he was sentenced to life in prison for the murder of his wife, Seble ‘Mimi’ Dietrich, who was last seen alive in 2014.
Dietrich was arrested almost a year later.
He pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in October, admitting to encasing her body in concrete under the couple’s shed at their home on Vancouver Drive.
READ MORE: Husband pleads guilty to killing wife, encasing body in concrete
A church leader in Kitchener and in Ethiopia, Seble Dietrich had been working to help abandoned children in the latter place.
“She has been a pioneer, she had this, you know, idea to start a charitable organization to help others,” said Denny Aschnaki, a member of the Mihert Evangelical Church.
Family and friends were present for the sentencing.
The court heard that Dietrich had not spoken to his children for a year, during which time they have been in a foster home.
Mimi's family said it was happy that the three children were able to stay together.
By court rule, Stephan Dietrich will be allowed contact with his kids by letters, which would be read by Children's Aid before delivery.
Dietrich, a German citizen, will not be eligible for parole until 2037, 22 years after he was arrested.
His lawyer said it would be up to Corrections Canada, Immigration and the German government to decide whether or not he would be sent to Germany to serve his time.
