Shafia family murder trial could resume Tuesday

KINGSTON, Ont. – A Montreal man charged with multiple murders is to
be discharged from hospital Friday afternoon, allowing his trial to
resume as soon as Tuesday.

“They did what they were going to do at
the hospital and they’re going to discharge him this afternoon,”
defence lawyer Peter Kemp said Friday morning. “I’ve talked to the
Crown and we’re going to try and get the jury back in and try and get
this thing rolling on Tuesday instead of Wednesday.”

Kemp
represents Mohammad Shafia, 58, who was taken to a hospital Wednesday
evening from the jail where he and his wife, Tooba Mohammad Yahya, 41,
and their son Hamed, 20, are being held while they are on trial in
Kingston.

The trio are accused of murdering four family members
who were found dead in a car submerged in the Rideau Canal in 2009. All
defendants have pleaded not guilty.

The trial was abruptly halted
Thursday because of Shafia’s illness. In court, the judge described it
as a “serious medical emergency.”

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Kemp would not discuss the nature of the medical problem but said it does not require a long recovery period.

“I’ve
advised all the other counsel and the judge that (Shafia) is being
discharged, and he’s anxious to get on with it,” Kemp said.

Shafia
was seen in a unit of Kingston General Hospital where heart problems
are investigated and procedures are conducted. Kemp had previously said
his client would undergo a “surgical procedure” Friday.

Shafia
was first taken Wednesday evening to a small community hospital in
Napanee, Ont., just west of Kingston, but he was later moved to the
larger hospital and placed in a section known as the cardiology lab. It
treats patients who have heart problems.

The trial
began Oct. 20, and 17 of a possible 58 witnesses had completed their
testimony. The 18th witness, an RCMP officer from British Columbia, was
in the midst of his testimony when the trial was adjourned.

Kemp
said he understands the officer has already headed back to B.C. but the
Crown will attempt to return him to Kingston so the trial can resume
Tuesday.

Jurors had watched most of a six-hour interrogation of
Yahya by two police investigators, including the RCMP officer. The video
featured long stretches of uncontrolled sobbing and crying by Yahya. In
the courtroom, Yahya and Shafia both began to cry in the prisoner’s box
as they viewed the recording. Shafia held a tissue to his face for long
stretches and turned his head away, seemingly grimacing in pain.

Zainab
Shafia, 19, Sahar Shafia, 17, and Geeti Shafia 13 – all sisters – and
Shafia’s first wife, Rona Amir Mohammad, 52, were found dead in a Nissan
Sentra at the bottom of a shallow canal on June 30, 2009. The three
suspects were arrested in Montreal roughly three weeks later.
Prosecutors allege the crime was an honour killing, orchestrated because
the father believed his daughters had shamed the family by taking
boyfriends and dressing in revealing clothes.

The Shafias, natives of Afghanistan, moved to Canada in 2007 and settled in St. Léonard. Shafia is a wealthy businessman.