In August 2010, Laura Lett-Beckett drowned near Shelter Bay in Upper Arrow Lake while on a vacation with her husband.
Peter Beckett told police his wife fell overboard from their inflatable boat and he was unable to rescue her.
The couple lived in a small, northern Alberta community. Lett-Beckett was an elementary school teacher.
A year after the drowning, Peter Beckett was arrested and charged with first-degree murder.
His trial started this week in Kelowna.
It’s the Crown’s theory Beckett murdered his wife to cash in on a $200,000 accidental death life insurance policy purchased a month before she died.
However, Beckett never made a claim for the insurance money.
The prosecutor also alleges Beckett was after his wife’s inheritance from her elderly and wealthy parents.
On Tuesday, the jury heard from a key prosecution witness, a cell-mate of Beckett’s who was soon to be released from jail.
The witness testified Beckett told him there was a lot of money coming his way if things were handled correctly and they could lead a lavish lifestyle in Costa Rica.
The witness says he then sent a letter to the RCMPs lead investigator in the case saying Beckett was looking to have some witnesses taken care of.
The witness testified Beckett asked how much of a retainer was necessary to take care of those witnesses.
The trial is expected to last about three weeks with the prosecution calling 19 witnesses to try to prove its case.
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