Roy Fraser (left) is on trial charged with the murders of Kenneth Yaretz Jr. (top right) and Damien Marks (bottom right).
(JENNIFER STAHN / iNFOnews.ca)
November 20, 2013 - 1:22 PM
KAMLOOPS - The local equivalent to CSI found blood throughout a murder victim's work van, a jury heard today.
Cpl. Jennifer Clark of the RCMP's forensic identification unit — 'Ident' — was part of a team of investigators in Kamloops trying to piece together what happened to Damien Marks, 31, and Kenneth Yaretz Jr., 24, back in 2009 after they disappeared. The two men were found dead and buried in shallow graves at Knouff Lake.
Roy Fraser, 56, pleaded not guilty after charged with their murders and faces trial, currently underway in B.C. Supreme Court in Kamloops. Clark testified today as part of the month-long trial, explaining the scientific process behind the RCMP investigation.
She described 'visible reddish stains' on the driver's side of the white-panelled van, formerly used by Marks who worked as a driver for Battery Direct before his death. Clark also described white marks on the doors and through the stain.
"It could have possibly been a clean-up area," she told the jury. "And it could have definitely been involved with the disappearance of the two males."
The van also contained cigarette butts, two separate boots, a long board and a baseball bat along with a muddy footprint in the rear of the cargo.
The jury has heard Yaretz Jr. was an acquaintance — and possibly a member — of the Independent Soldiers gang and owed money to Kelowna gang, the Kingpins. The jury has also heard Fraser was angry with Yaretz Jr. for not returning a truck he'd loaned him. The truck is believed to have been sold to the Kingpins gang, who Yaretz. Jr. allegedly owed money to.
To contact a reporter for this story, email: jwallace@infotelnews.ca, call: (250) 319-7494 or tweet: @jess__wallace.
This story was corrected at 3:30 p.m. on Nov. 20, 2013. An earlier version of the story stated Yaretz Jr. worked for Battery Direct, when it was Damien Marks. We apologize for the error.
News from © iNFOnews, 2013