Forensic expert reveals details of Dominik Adamek's final moments in hit-and-run trial
Warning: Details in this article may be disturbing to some readers.
The trial of a Newmarket woman accused in a fatal hit-and-run five years ago in Springwater resumed Wednesday with testimony from a forensic pathologist detailing Dominik Adamek's last moments.
"Death would have been very quick, within minutes, if not less," Dr. Anita Lal told the courtroom, describing how an autopsy revealed the 27-year-old man died of multiple blunt force trauma.
Dr. Lal said Adamek suffered blood loss, damage to his spine and a head contusion, which could have been from striking the vehicle's hood or windshield.
"They're quite severe injuries," the expert witness testified.
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Adamek's body was found in a farmer's field after being struck by a car along Wilson Drive near Carson Road sometime before 6 a.m. on May 5, 2018.
The court heard he had been dropped off by an Uber roughly 2.5 kilometres from his home after a night out, leaving him to walk the rest of the way in the early morning hours.
After his death, Adamek's family pleaded for the person responsible to surrender to the police. A $50,000 reward was later offered for information. No one came forward.
Nine months after Adamek's death, police arrested Maimuna Baldeh, now 35, and charged her with failure to stop at an accident causing death.
The Crown presented photos taken from the scene of the crash, and investigators testified finding debris from what appeared to be a vehicle, including pieces of glass from the headlight and a tinted windshield with what may have been blood on it.
OPP Const. Greg Nell described evidence collected at the scene, including the victim's sock.
"It is very common in collisions that literally the victim is knocked out of their shoes," he said.
Maimuna Baldeh, 35, of Newmarket, Ont., outside the Barrie courthouse on Tues., Oct. 24, 2023. (CTV News/Mike Arsalides)
On Tuesday, a witness testified to seeing what appeared to be a man walking along the road that morning and then brake lights from a vehicle in the distance that then seemed to veer around something on the roadway.
Shortly after the hit-and-run, police issued a media release appealing for information on the suspect vehicle, described as a 2011 to 2013 Toyota Corolla with front-end and passenger-side damage.
In the Barrie courtroom Wednesday, the court heard police had found an invoice in Baldeh's glovebox showing work had been done on her Toyota Corolla at a body shop two days after the hit-and-run for more than $2,000. The work included a fender, grill, hood and a paint job.
One week later, another invoice at the same body shop showed a charge of $300 for work that included a tinted window.
Police said she told them her car had been vandalized.
Baldeh was arrested on Jan. 30, 2019, nearly nine months after the deadly hit-and-run.
The two-week trial continues Thursday with more testimony from the Crown's witnesses.
The allegations against the accused have not been tested in court.
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