A sample of a letter reassembled from cross-cut shreds by MHPS Const. Kurtis Ladouceur from paper recovered from a shredding machine seized by police from the home of Robert Hoefman.
A Medicine Hat court heard Tuesday how a city police officer took weeks to reassemble a shredded letter recovered at the home of a man accused of a 2017 first-degree murder.
Robert Hoefman, 59, is accused of the homicide of James Satre on Oct. 10, 2017 as part of an extortion scheme to garner $1 million from an individual who can’t be identified due to a publication ban.
During testimony on Tuesday, Medicine Hat police Const. Kurtis Ladouceur held up the reconstructed letter to the jurors that was recovered from dozens – if not hundreds – of pieces from a cross-cut paper shredder.
The court heard earlier testimony of the paper shredder being recovered from Hoefman’s residence just after he was arrested on the evening of Nov. 8, 2017.
The profanity-laced letter was similar in content to that received by the target of the extortion on Nov. 7, which offered a second chance to make good on the $1-million payment.
The previous payment made at a spot off College Drive on Oct. 16 went awry, with a bag prepared by police to appear to contain cash not being recovered – a fact which appeared to push the reconstructed letter’s author to the point of utilizing excessive profanity.
Messaging in the letter was also consistent with others connected with the extortion plot, in which the target and authorities were said to be at fault for “ordering all these hits” rather than the “Wolf Pack” carrying out the scheme.
The letter also utilized similar use of text found in others recovered as part of the extortion investigation, including, randomly incorporated capitalization, bolding and underlining.
The reconstructed letter indicated there was a second “hit” but, “the animals are devouring it fast and pulled it down a hill so we took all of the pictures and documents that we left there for the news to find and report, but it still counts as one hit because it will be found eventually.”
The court heard earlier testimony Tuesday that no other homicide occurred around the time crimes Hoefman is accused of took place.
Testimony earlier in the day saw the defence again go after police handling of exhibits.
During cross-examination of former city police Sgt. Randy Teel, defence lawyer Ian McKay questioned the handling of a second-chance extortion letter received Nov. 7, 2017. The first letter was received Oct. 10, 2017 with a failed money drop occurring Oct. 16.
McKay questioned the technique of Teel’s handling of the letter after he testified to placing it into his folder, which could put the exhibit at risk of cross-contamination prior to submitting it for DNA analysis.
Under cross-examination of Medicine Hat police Staff-Sgt. Trevor Humphries, McKay again questioned police techniques, highlighting the seemingly close relationship between one of the investigators on the file and a former business associate of the extortion target.
The court heard earlier evidence of police investigating that business associate for possible involvement, including placing tracking devices on his vehicles.
Const. Ladouceur was also questioned during cross-examination about two calls he received on his police-issued phone from a man asking to speak to that same business associate before hanging up.
Ladouceur told the court the calls came from a private number, he made note of the incident and informed other investigators about what had happened.
The trial continues Wednesday.
