A 37-year-old man will be sentenced next week to life in prison for the murder of his neighbour, a 29-year-old mother of two, over a noise complaint. A judge must decide how long the killer must wait before he can apply for parole.

Many questions about the incident remained in a downtown Toronto courtroom Friday, where Peter Gulyas sat quietly during his sentencing hearing.

It took a jury only a few hours to convict Gulyas of second-degree murder after hearing the Crown's case against him. Defence lawyer Barry Fox called no evidence, no explanation of why Robyn Jenkins was killed back on August 7, 2012.

"This particular crime, at least in my experience, is about as odd and as senseless as they come," Fox told Justice John McMahon Friday.

McMahon must decide how long Gulyas must wait before applying for parole. Fox asked for 10 years. Crown attorney Jackie Garrity asked for 16 to 18 years.

Court heard that Gulyas had made many complaints in the past about his neighbours at 15 Sewells Rd., near Sheppard Ave. and Neilson Rd. On the evening in question, then 35-year-old Gulyas complained to the superintendent that there was too much noise coming from the unit below, where Jenkins was with her four-year-old son, Dean, and her five-year-old son, Tyrell.

After Gulyas went to the superintendent, Jenkins asked a neighbour to watch her children. She then went upstairs to confront Gulyas.

Neighbours heard yelling, then silence.

Somehow, Jenkins ended up inside Gulyas' apartment. It is the Crown's opinion that Gulyas forced Jenkins inside.

Gulyas choked Jenkins to unconsciousness, then grabbed a knife, slashed her throat and slashed her wrists. He then called 911, telling the operator, "Please send someone to pick me up," but offering no explanation of what happened or why.

Asked if he would like to speak during his sentencing hearing Friday, Gulyas told McMahon, "No, your honour."

McMahon heard victim impact statements from Jenkins' common-law husband, Steve Husain, her mother, Jennifer Jenkins, and her two children.

Husain wrote of how he is now a single father who cannot replace Jenkins' motherly love.

"Robyn was entering the prime of her life at the age of 29. She was a daughter, a friend and my life-long companion. We were together for 13 years and did everything together. She was my best friend. I thought we'd be together forever," Husain wrote. "Even sleeping pills can't help me sleep. I've lost my appetite. I'm crying all the time. I feel like I'm all by myself."

Jennifer Jenkins told the judge that she was not on speaking terms with her daughter when the murder happened, something that haunts her to this day.

"As of 2012 to date, I have not been able to work, my marriage of 24 years has failed and I'm on several different medications just to get through the day," she wrote. "Robyn, I have this to say to you. I love you and miss you with everything I have left in me."

Court heard that Tyrell, now seven, and Dean, now six, have been teased at school for not having a mother. They are the only children in their classes without a mother, their father told the judge.

In his victim impact statement, Tyrell wrote in part, "Why did he kill my mom? I wish I had my mom. I (used) to play with her. And have a picnic."

And from his little brother, Dean: "I miss my mom. We go to the water park. We go to Niagara Falls...I miss my mom all the time. Why did he kill my mom?"

Gulyas is scheduled to be sentenced June 5.