TORONTO – A trial that gripped a Brampton court for over a month came to an end on Monday as the jury in the Aleksandra Firgin-Hewie murder trial found the accused Rafal LaSota guilty of first-degree murder.
The co-accused, Michelle Liard, was found not-guilty.
Firgan-Hewie’s body was found in a garbage bag in the backyard of LaSota’s house on December 11, 2008, a day after she was badly beaten and riddled with 37 stab wounds.
Global News has compiled a timeline of the key moments in the trial.
December 10, 2008.
Aleksandra Firgan-Hewie is allegedly lured by the two accused into the LaSota’s home. The victim is believed to have known the pair. Firgan-Hewie suffers from 37 knife wounds and over 20 blunt force injuries.
December 11, 2008.
The morning after Firgan-Hewie is murdered, LaSota tells his mother he accidentally killed the girl. LaSota’s mother calls police, who arrest Liard and LaSota.
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February 22, 2012.
The trial of Michelle Liard and Rafal Lasota begins in a Brampton court. On the first day of the trial, the judge tells the court that there is “no mystery” over who killed the 13-year old girl. “Mr. LaSota killed her,” Ontario Superior Court Judge David Corbett tells the jury.
There is also no mystery about how she died, Corbett added. According to report, several of the 37 knife wounds were fatal, including two to her neck.
February 24, 2012.
The Crown presents to the jury a piece of fictional writing by Liard that details a horrific murder in a hotel room. Starting with “Here’s my f—king story,” the short, six-page story chronicles the fictional account of a woman named Meesha and her boyfriend – Rafal – as they pick up a hitchhiker and check into a hotel, where they proceed to torture a blonde girl before killing her.
“She was making muffled noises that sounded like the word ‘help,’” the story reads. “Raff took the knife and sung a little tune. Mass murder makes me happy. Dead bodies make me happy.”
March 22, 2012.
Video footage of Firgan-Hewie is shown to the jury for the first time on March 22, when she gave a Nov. 2008 statement about a break-in at her house.
Liard denies killing Firgan-Hewie, knowing about the murder, or helping to move the body.
The jury is shown video of Liard in a police interview from Dec. 2008, where she tells an officer her boyfriend, LaSota, admitted that he’d killed Firgan-Hewie. Liard tells police she helped him clean up because she “loved her boyfriend.”
WARNING: This excerpt contains coarse language.
April 2, 2012
LaSota is found guilty of first-degree murder, while his co-accused, Michelle Liard, is found not-guilty.
LaSota is sentenced to life in prison, with no chance of parole until 2033 – the automatic sentence after being convicted of first-degree murder.
“She thought you were her friend,” the judge tells LaSota during his sentencing.
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