'This was a crime of passion,' Closing submissions in Barrie murder trial
Warning: Readers may find some details in this article disturbing or upsetting.
Closing submissions are underway on Thursday in the case of a Barrie man on trial for the death of a young mother 30 years ago.
Bruce Ellis, aka Robert MacQueen, is accused of fatally stabbing Katherine Janeiro in her Dunlop Street West apartment on Oct. 10, 1994.
He is charged with second-degree murder.
Crown attorney Mary-Anne Alexander told the court Ellis had been in an extra-marital affair with Janeiro that had ended badly.
Alexander alleged he got angry with Janeiro for telling his wife she was pregnant and spreading rumours he had contracted AIDS from an exotic dancer.
Last month, his ex-wife took the stand, telling the court they lived across the street from Janeiro's apartment and that Ellis often went to the young woman's place when the couple argued.
The Crown claimed Ellis took Janeiro's life in her bathtub while she was naked and vulnerable and moved her body to the bedroom, where she was later found.
A neighbour who often went to Janeiro's unit to borrow her phone found the 20-year-old's lifeless body face down on her bedroom floor and called the police.
During the trial, the court heard Janeiro had been buying and selling drugs and that several people had been in her apartment in the hours leading up to her body being found.
A witness took the stand to tell the courtroom that two men, Woody Theakston and Paul Daigle, were in Janeiro's kitchen rummaging through her cupboards before they fled the apartment.
The Crown said Theakston was in Janeiro's apartment looking for cough syrup for a friend and had a key to let himself in.
Daigle admitted to the court that when he realized Janeiro was dead, he and Theakston wiped their fingerprints from inside the unit. He also said he didn't call the police but later went to give a statement.
The defence pointed to Daigle, suggesting he moved Janeiro's body from the bathroom to the bedroom. He denied any involvement.
Theakston has since passed away.
Alexander went on to stress Theakston had an alibi for when Janeiro was fatally stabbed.
During the trial, the court also heard testimony from a woman who recounted seeing a man running toward Milligan's Pond the evening of the murder with a phone in his hands, the cord dangling.
The court had previously learned officers discovered Janeiro's phone had been ripped out of the wall and was missing.
The prosecution told the courtroom Ellis took the phone because he had paid for it, saying there was no way he was leaving it behind, detailing for the jury how upset Ellis allegedly was over the phone bill.
The phone was later found in a creek.
"This was not about drugs. This was not about cash. This was personal," the Crown argued on Thursday, adding, "This was a crime of passion."
Defence lawyer Mary Cremer countered the prosecution's case, telling the jury Ellis had no reason to kill Janeiro, calling the Crown's motive for murder weak and nonsensical.
"Killing someone over a household bill," Cremer said, "makes absolutely no sense."
The defence once again pointed the finger at someone other than Ellis.
"Woody never once showed any concern for Kathy's welfare and at all times remained 100 per cent concerned about himself," Cremer said, noting the alleged drug dealer was expected to visit Janeiro the night of her death.
Ellis, now 61, has maintained his innocence throughout the trial.
- Download the CTV News app to get local alerts on your device
- Get the latest local updates sent to your email inbox
With files from CTV's Mike Arsalides
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Auto theft probe leads to arrest of 59 suspects, recovery of more than 300 stolen vehicles: Toronto police
Toronto police say 59 suspects are facing a total of 300 charges in connection with an auto theft and re-vinning probe.
WATCH 'It's mind-boggling': Drought reveals U.S. town submerged in the 1940s
Hundreds of people are flocking to see a rare site in Pennsylvania: remnants of a historic town that is usually underwater.
B.C. landlord who evicted longtime tenant, hiked rent and re-listed unit ordered to pay $16K
A landlord from B.C.’s Lower Mainland who evicted a longtime tenant only to rent out the same unit months later for more money has been ordered to compensate him $16,480.
Meet Decoy Ohtani, perhaps the most valuable pet of the World Series
The Dodgers' most valuable pet: Decoy Ohtani, dog of Shohei, has become a fixture of Dodgers — and dog — fandom.
Bradley Barton's sentence upheld by appeals court in 2011 death of Cindy Gladue
An appeal has been denied to extend the sentence of an Ontario trucker who killed a woman in his Edmonton hotel room in 2011.
Secret Service report offers new details on failures during Trump assassination attempt
A new Secret Service report into the July assassination attempt against former U.S. president Donald Trump said multiple staffers knew about clear line-of-sight risks but found them 'acceptable' and that farm equipment intended to obstruct the view from the nearby building where the gunman opened fire was never used.
B.C. mayor's 'luxury' trip to Dubai climate conference was against ethics rules: commissioner
New Westminster Mayor Patrick Johnstone's all-expenses-paid trip to Dubai for a climate conference last December violated the city's Code of Conduct for Council Members and the Community Charter, the city's ethics commissioner has ruled.
Human remains found in Markham, Ont. in 1980 belonged to prison escapee: police
More than 44 years after human remains were found in a rural area of Markham, Ont., police are revealing that the deceased was an inmate who had escaped prison just a month before his body was found.
Ont. woman posed as registered nurse in Simcoe County for 4 years: OPP
An Ontario woman is facing serious charges after police allege she pretended to be a registered nurse at several Simcoe County facilities, despite being unqualified.