The first-degree murder trial of a young woman accused of bludgeoning to death the boyfriend of her female lover began with the Crown alleging she did it out of jealousy and as part of a plan to collect $250,000 in insurance money.
"They made a plan on how, where and when to commit the murder," said Crown attorney Tom Lissaman in his opening address to the jury yesterday in a Toronto courtroom.
Ashleigh Pechaluk, 24, is on trial in Ontario Superior Court accused of striking Dennis Hoy with an axe at least six times in October, 2006, while he lay sleeping in the apartment she shared with her girlfriend, Nicola Puddicombe, in the Etobicoke section of Toronto.
A youthful-looking Ms. Pechaluk sat behind her lawyers in the courtroom, wearing a blue crew-neck sweater and dark pants, with short dark hair.
The jury heard that Ms. Puddicombe will be tried separately later this year, but she featured prominently in the prosecution’s opening argument as it laid out the evidence it will present at the trial of Ms. Pechaluk.
Ms. Puddicombe, 36, was working at a Loblaws in Toronto as a manager in 2005 when she became involved with Ms. Pechaluk, who worked in the store’s photo studio. Ms. Puddicombe was also in a long-term romantic relationship with Mr. Hoy, who was 36 and lived at home with his parents when he was killed.
"During the course of their intimate relationship, Ashleigh Pechaluk and Nicola Puddicombe decided to murder Dennis Hoy. And they made a plan to deceive the police," Mr. Lissaman said.
The prosecutor told the jury it will see "journal notes and writings" by Ms. Pechaluk that indicated she was "obsessed" with Ms. Puddicombe and hated Mr. Hoy.
"In terms of Nicola Puddicombe’s motive, it may have been slightly different from Ashleigh’s. She stood to gain $250,000 as the sole beneficiary of Dennis Hoy’s life insurance and pension policies," Mr. Lissaman said.
The murder plan was to attack Mr. Hoy while he was sleeping in Ms. Puddicombe’s bed as she pretended to take a shower, said the Crown. The night that he was attacked, it was Ms. Puddicombe who called 911.
They planned to tell police that Mr. Hoy was part of the Hells Angels and was "into sketchy stuff," the Crown said. "There is no independent evidence that Dennis Hoy was a biker or a drug dealer," Mr. Lissaman told the jury.
A blood-covered axe was found lying across the body of Mr. Hoy, who was on his stomach in bed in the apartment the two women shared with a third male roommate.
One officer cried out "holy s—" after viewing Mr. Hoy’s body, the jury heard.
There is no DNA or fingerprint evidence linking anyone to the murder weapon. But the Crown told the jury that the key prosecution witnesses will be two co-workers at the Loblaws store, whom Ms. Pechaluk allegedly confided in about the scheme to kill Mr. Hoy. "The fact is Ashleigh Pechaluk linked herself to the crime when she outlined her plan in detail, including her own role as the killer and Nicola Puddicombe’s role as
the deceiver," the Crown said.
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