THUNDER BAY – Gasoline found throughout the scene points to the blaze that led emergency responders to the eventual discovery of Wilfred Pott and Anne Chuchmuch in their Brant street home being deliberately set.
The double murder trial against Benjamin Marki, which continued on Friday at the Thunder Bay Courthouse with the fourth day of evidence, heard testimony from two expert witnesses who told the court about the presence of the accelerant throughout the laundry room where the charred body of the 50-year-old Chuchmuch was located.
Marki, who was living in the home with the couple at the time of the fire, stands charged with two counts of second degree murder, one count of arson endangering life and one count of committing an indignity to a body.
Thunder Bay Fire Rescue crews were called to the Brant Street home on Dec. 27, 2015, where they found the 60-year-old Pott unresponsive and Chuchmuch dead while doing a secondary search of the home.
Forensic pathologist Dr. Michael Pickup on Thursday testified that Pott and Chuchmuch did not have soot in their airways, an indication neither was breathing at the time of the fire.
Jason Williams, an investigator with the Office of the Fire Marshal, was brought from Southern Ontario to probe the fire. Williams told the court the blaze was deliberately set, with the intentionally added presence of gasoline allowing the fire to start.
The 12 jurors were shown photos of the fire ravaged laundry room, which Williams told them was where the fire started and was where Chuchmuch’s body was found under debris.
Williams said the fire blew out the window of the back door, allowing smoke and soot to mark the exterior of the home. It also burned down the wooden door separating the laundry room from the hallway, which caused limited spread through the rest of the house.
Under cross examination from defence lawyer George Joseph, Williams acknowledged he could not provide answers about how long the fire had been burning before it was put out or what had ignited the flames.
Centre of Forensic Sciences chemist Robert Hong-You had earlier testified that more than trace amounts of gasoline were found on shoes collected from Marki, though he could not quantify how much or exactly how they came into contact with gas.
Chuchmuch's partially burned clothing, a melted gas can and sections of carpet under the body were among items tested that were all positive for the presence of gasoline above trace amounts.
Two Thunder Bay Police Service officers who each had close contact with Marki took the stand in the afternoon.
Sgt. Shawn Whipple, who was then with the police service’s criminal investigations branch, said he was alone with Marki in a small booking room at the police station hours after the fire.
“I noticed a strong odour of gasoline on Mr. Marki,” Whipple said.
Joseph implied that police had zeroed in on Marki, who was released after the fire but subsequently arrested nearly three weeks later after being under covert surveillance, from the beginning of the investigation.
“Since Dec. 27, 2015 you never had another suspect in this case,” Joseph suggested to Whipple. “Mr. Marki was the only person of interest prior to his arrest.”
Det. Const. Shannon Primmer, who took photographs of Marki and collected swabs from his hands, documented a cut on his right hand between the thumb and index finger but said she did not recall smelling gasoline.
Primmer also did not find anything notable – blood or gasoline – on Marki’s jacket when it was examined in a lab.
The trial is scheduled to continue on Monday.
