Ian Bush trial: Adjourned until Wednesday
The Ian Bush first-degree murder trial will resume this week at the Ottawa courthouse with testimony expected from another Crown witness, a chief forensic pathologist.
In the first week of the trial, the jury heard a Crown prosecutor's opening arguments about how Bush, 61, allegedly killed retired tax court judge Alban Garon, 77, his 73-year-old wife Raymonde, and their friend Marie-Claire Beniskos, 78.
The three victims' bodies were found beaten, bound, and gagged inside a 10th floor apartment at 1510 Riverside Dr. on June 30, 2007. Bush was charged in 2015 with three counts of first-degree murder.
Jurors are also likely to hear more testimony this week from Nancy Bouillon, a property manager who worked at the three-tower condo complex in 2007.
Crown prosecutor James Cavanaugh told the jury last week that Ottawa police officers are expected to testify that when they arrived at the building on June 30, they heard a buzz coming from the gate, which was unlocked when they pushed it.
Trial expected to last 12 weeks
Horrific details of the killings were revealed to the jury when the trial started last Wednesday.
Alban Garon suffered extensive blunt-force injuries to his head, including a "bloodletting" skull fracture, according to assistant Crown attorney Tim Wightman. A bag was placed around his head and a noose was tied around his neck and the bag, he said.
Raymonde Garon sustained a shoulder fracture and Beniskos, the couple's neighbour and friend, suffered fractured ribs. Both women were hog-tied with bags tied over their heads, and both died of suffocation, Wightman said.
The trial is scheduled to last 12 weeks at the Elgin Street courthouse. The Crown opened its case to the jury painting Bush as a disgruntled man who despised taxes and the people who collect them.
Wightman described Bush's hatred of taxation and belief that all forms of it were "an abomination."
But it didn't stop there. Bush went so far as to send a letter to Alban, a retired federal tax judge, in an attempt to lure him to a fictitious court proceeding at his home, the Crown said.
Son identified accused on OC Transpo surveillance video
The jury also saw surveillance videos purportedly depicting Bush walking from the Hurdman OC Transpo station in the direction of the Garons' condo on the day of the killings, and then returning to the station an hour later.
Bush's son identified the man in the video as his father, pointing to his distinctive gait and fanny pack as distinct clues.
The Crown also introduced a photo of a shirtless Bush doing pushups on his fingertips because in the rear corner of the photo is a pair of white running shoes. Wightman said in the Garon apartment police found a footprint that matched that of a pair of New Balance 504 shoes.
Bush has pleaded not guilty to all charges.
