The two decorative swords found at the scene of a bloody attack that left one man dead and another severely injured were capable of striking the fatal blow, court heard Monday in the murder trial of Denecho King.
John Wifladt, 39, suffered a severe laceration that punctured his diaphragm and spleen, court heard Monday from Crown prosecutor Alex Godfrey, who was reading from autopsy reports by the chief medical examiner in Edmonton.
Wifladt later died in hospital after being found lying on the floor of a Sunridge Apartments unit, bloodied and with a bent sword underneath him.
His best friend Colin Digness, 43, who lived in the apartment and owned the swords, suffered severe injuries to his head and face and spent nearly a month recovering in an Edmonton hospital.
King is alleged to have entered the apartment in the early morning hours of Dec. 14, 2014 and attacked the two men. Photos displayed in court showed two samurai-style swords at the crime scene. A photo published May 2014 on Digness' Facebook account shows him, with another unidentified man standing behind, posing with swords similar to the ones shown in court. It's unknown whether they are the same two swords found at the crime scene.
“(Wifladt) suffered a stab wound 90 millimetres in length and two millimetres in width,” Godfrey read in front of the court. “The lightning bolt shape laceration pierced the victim's diaphragm and ruptured his spleen which caused his death.”
The autopsy conducted by the examiner on Dec. 16, 2014 also determined Wifladt suffered significant bruising to his face and torso.
NNSL file photo
After reviewing the case the chief medical examiner determined both swords found at the crime scene were capable of creating the laceration that killed the victim.
Monday, the court also heard testimony from City of Yellowknife first responders who were working the night of the alleged attack.
All three first responders said a call came through dispatch at 5 a.m. on Dec. 14, 2014.
After entering room 323 at Sunridge apartments they said they saw two men – Wifladt and Digness – semi-responsive on the floor in the apartment.
Firefighter David Hampson said he was tasked with tending to Wifladt.
“He tried to reach out and grab on to me... he had a laceration on the top of his head which wasn't consistent with the amount of blood on his shirt,” said Hampson.
Hampson testified he and the fire department lieutenant Paul Grismer, carried Wifladt from the room and down the stairwell before placing him in the ambulance.
“Once we had him in the ambulance he started to become combative ... Grabbing the straps of the backboard and trying to sit up,” said Hampson. “He kept repeating the same two phrases to me, 'Help me' and 'where am I?'”
Wifladt died later that morning in hospital.
Families in court
On Monday the accused's brother appeared in court for the first time since the trial began.
Denecho King walked out of the holding room before the trial and spotted his brother Travis King, 21. Denecho King proceeded to make gestures with his hands while laughing at his brother, which prompted the RCMP to remove the younger man from his spot in the front row of the court gallery.
King's lawyer Jay Bran pressed the court to allow the sibling to sit behind his brother. He said it was unlawful for RCMP to remove him from his spot.
“It's my client's constitutional right to have support during this trial,” said Bran.
Members of John Wifladt's family were also in court Monday.
At the end of proceedings for the day, a woman who identifies as Wifladt's sister stood behind King before he exited the courtroom. Tears in her eyes, she shouted as he got up from his seat and left.
“You're a sick monster and a (expletive) coward,” she yelled. “Not so tough now, are you?”