Skip to content

Denecho King's fingerprints not at the crime scene

DENECHO-VIEWING-035-fior-web
King, 25, walks past Crown prosecutor Alex Godfrey in front of Sunridge Place apartments. Brendan Burke/NNSL photo.

Four fingerprints and one palm print found in room 323 of the Sunridge Place apartments did not belong to Denecho King, foot impression and fingerprint expert Christopher Rand Self testified on Tuesday.

Self told the court fingerprints found on the dagger and sword cases at the crime scene did not match King, who is accused of killing John Wifladt and severely injuring Wifladt's best friend Colin Digness.

“I am 100 per cent certain they (the prints) could not have belonged to Denecho King,” said Self.

His office received King's fingerprints on May 4, 2015 and ran an independent investigation which excluded not only King, but Digness, Wifladt and four other people who offered their prints.

The cases for two samurai-style swords – the murder weapons used in the Denecho King trial, were found not to contain King's fingerprints, the court heard on Tuesday. / NNSL photo.

No prints were found on the weapons themselves, including two samurai-style decorative swords owned by Digness, which the Crown prosecution says were used in the attack.

On May 7, 2015 – after the investigation – Self entered the prints into a Automated Fingerprint Identification System (AFIS).

AFIS is a database that keeps fingerprints for anyone in the country who holds a criminal record.

There have been no matches made to fingerprints found at the crime scene.

Self also testified Tuesday regarding three shoe impressions in the hallway of the apartment.

The court was presented a photo of the white running shoes King was wearing on the night of the attack. The shoes were stolen that night while King was sleeping at the Northern Lights Motel.

“The footwear could not have made the impressions (footprints) at the scene,” said Self.

The prints could not be clearly identified but to his knowledge, Self said they came from “vibrant” sole, more specifically a boot much the same as what first responders would be wearing while tending to Digness and Wifladt.

Photos taken by Self on Jan. 9, 2015 were shown in court on Tuesday. Aside from the crime scene there were three additional blood stains found outside of Fort Gary Apartments. Two stains were found on the window pane outside of an exit on the righ-thand side of the building.

One stain was found on glass portion of the door.

Self will enter cross examination this morning at 9 a.m. before NWT Supreme Court Justice Andrew Mahar. The trial is by judge alone.

A blood spatter analysis is also scheduled to be in court today to present his findings from the stains at the crime scene, Northern Lights Motel and Fort Gary Apartments.