‘Lying on the floor:’ Woman tells B.C. trial how she found her partner’s mutilated body

Warning: This story deals with disturbing subject matter that may upset or disturb some readers. Discretion is advised.

A Louisville Slugger baseball bat and box cutter were found next to the body of a Kelowna, B.C., man who Crown counsel says in 2021 suffered a violent death before being castrated and left partially naked on a bathroom floor.

On June 17, 2021, Darren Middleton’s common-law spouse of four years, Brenda Adams, discovered his remains in the home of his accused killer, Gabriella Sears, Crown counsel David Grabavac told the start of Sears’ trial on Monday. Sears, who is transgender, was charged with second-degree murder under her birth name.

Adams and Middleton had known Sears for around five months, according to Adams. They were friends, and Sears worked for the couple, helping with manual labour around their property. In turn, they paid Sears in food and drinks.

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It was midday June 16, 2021, Grabavac said, when Middleton told Adams that he was going to pick up some turf, and that he’d be back soon.

“Soon” came and went, and Middleton didn’t return home. Adams started to get worried, called people he may have been in contact with, and drove around looking for him.

Hours later, Adams thought she should check in with Sears and drove to her house.

When she arrived at the Sycamore Road home, Adams saw Middleton’s truck in the driveway. She “could hear water running inside the residence and nothing else,” Grabavac said.

“She eventually entered the residence, and followed the sound of running water to the bathroom.”

That’s where she found him.

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“He was lying on the floor,” Grabavac told the court. “There was blood everywhere.”

Adams then noticed a large gash on Middleton’s neck and that his penis was partially severed. She said she saw a knife nearby and called 911.

When RCMP arrived, they found “a substantial amount of blood spattered and smeared throughout the bathroom,” Grabavac said.

“There was a baseball bat located near the deceased’s head, and that Louisville Slugger was covered in blood.”

Sears was found quickly. She claimed she had been raped by Middleton and had fought back.

An autopsy later showed that Middleton died from blunt force trauma to his head — one of at least 31 separate injuries, including a rupture of the right eyebrow, multiple skull fractures, and the removal of his testicles.