A Saskatoon murder case that's been in and out of the courts for years ended abruptly Monday when Wilfred Hathway pleaded guilty to manslaughter.

More than four years after his arrest, Hathway, 49, has pleaded guilty to manslaughter in the stabbing death of his landlord, Denver Bruce Crawford, 84.

Until Monday, Hathway had always claimed he had nothing to do with Crawford's death. He said he discovered Crawford's body upon arriving home after a night of heavy drinking.

It was he who phoned 911 in May 1998.

Saskatoon police soon became suspicious, but it wasn't until six years later, after an elaborate undercover RCMP sting, that Hathway was arrested and charged.

Hathway was videotaped telling a man he thought to be an underworld king-pin that he was the one who stabbed Crawford to death.

Afterwards Hathway always maintained that he was tricked into giving a false confession.

He spent the next four years tangling with the prosecution over several preliminary matters.

His sentencing is set for Nov. 13.

With first-degree murder, the sentence is automatically life, with no chance of parole for 25 years.

With manslaughter, life is the maximum but there's no statutory minimum.

Hathway's sentence is expected to take into consideration the more than four years he's already spent behind bars awaiting court proceedings.