Drive-by murder trial examines wiretaps, videos

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 20/02/2019 (1890 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

After more than a week spent listening to wiretap recordings, watching video footage, reading pages of text messages and cell phone records and hearing about a lengthy homicide investigation that aimed to solve one of the city’s rare drive-by shootings, Court of Queen’s Bench Justice Chris Martin will soon be tasked with making a decision that will affect the fates of two admitted drug dealers.

Julian Donally Telfer and Paige Eveline Crossman have pleaded not guilty to the first-degree murder of 32-year-old Edmonton resident Theodoros (Teddy) Belayneh, and not guilty to the attempted murder of a second man, who was also shot in Belayneh’s vehicle around 3 a.m., Nov. 26, 2016, near the intersection of Stradbrook Avenue and Donald Street.

As the murder trial wraps up, Martin heard the prosecution’s theory of the case today and is expected to hear closing arguments from defence lawyers on Friday.

Crown prosecutors Chris Vanderhooft and Colin Soul suggested the shooting happened because of a nightclub fight three hours before the deadly gunfire, in which Telfer was sucker punched and ultimately kicked out of the bar — a theory Telfer’s defence lawyer, Jennifer Penman, argued was a red herring and a “weak motive at best.”

The Crown argued Telfer and Crossman went back to the Reset Ultralounge nightclub on Pembina Highway in a rented vehicle and followed the men they believed were responsible for the assault. There is no direct evidence about the identity of the shooter — no eye witnesses reported seeing the shooter or seeing Crossman or Telfer in the passing vehicle at the time of the shooting. But the Crown argues Crossman was driving and Telfer could have been sitting in the back seat when he allegedly fired the gun. 

Penman cautioned against “filling in the gaps with speculation,” saying the identity of the shooter is “a very big piece that’s missing.” She argued many of Telfer’s actions can be explained by the fact that he was heavily involved in the drug trade, not that he’s guilty of homicide.

According to the Crown’s theory, the two accused drove back to Telfer’s apartment block at 300 Roslyn Road after the shooting and parked the vehicle outside the building just before 3:30 a.m. Although Penman disputes this based on the “poor quality” of the video footage from outside the building, the Crown argues Crossman and Telfer can be seen getting out of the car and entering the apartment block.

They returned to the rented Jeep Nov. 30, cleaned it at a Husky car wash and returned it to a Budget car rental centre that day. But Winnipeg Police Service investigators had earlier found the parked vehicle and installed tracking devices that allowed them to keep tabs on the whereabouts of the accused. That evidence, as well as wiretap evidence taken from Telfer’s and Crossman’s cellphones and intercepts set up to record audio in their apartments and vehicles, played a large role in the Crown’s case. 

The trial revealed homicide investigators set up scenarios designed to provoke Telfer and Crossman into talking about the murder. Homicide unit Sgt. John O’Donovan testified about some of the efforts police undertook to try to get a response from the two suspects. He held a news conference about the murder in January 2017, hoping to get them talking while they were under surveillance.

Police also had flyers delivered twice to all residents of Crossman’s apartment building at 3 Donald St., asking for residents to call homicide detectives.

And police pulled Crossman over while she was driving to ask her whether she had spoken to homicide detectives.

“The constellation of all of these things,” points to their involvement in the homicide, Crown prosecutor Vanderhooft argued.

In a conversation with Telfer after Crossman was pulled over, the Crown argues she references him killing a man and asks “What if they know it was you?” The defence disputes the context of that wiretapped conversation and others the Crown says show evidence of guilt.

katie.may@freepress.mb.ca  

Twitter: @thatkatiemay