VANCOUVER — A former Kamloops, B.C., lawyer admits to killing his client, but his defence lawyer says it wasn’t planned and evidence at trial doesn’t support a first-degree murder conviction for Rogelio ‘Butch’ Bagabuyo.
The B.C. Supreme Court trial in Vancouver has heard that Mohd Abdullah hired Bagabuyo in 2016 and they conspired to hide “large sums of money” during Abdullah’s separation from his wife, but Bagabuyo later spent the cash.
Mark Swartz told the judge in his closing arguments that a reasonable explanation is that Bagabuyo had confessed to his client on March 11 that the money was gone and “all hell broke loose” in a struggle that left Abdullah dead.
He said the events were “unexpected” and Bagabuyo was “left with what to do with this body,” which is evidenced by his movements after the killing, including enlisting the help of a elderly friend to rent a van and find a place to dispose of the body.
Bagabuyo was arrested on March 18, 2022, the day after the body was discovered inside the tote by the friend’sgrandson.
The Crown attorney told the court this week that Bagabuyo methodically planned the murder for more than a week and should be convicted of the most serious charge.
Ann Katrine Saettler told Justice Kathleen Ker that the purchase of a large tote in which Abdullah’s body was found, and a “planning note” written by the accused before the murder was all evidence of the plot.
The note was written by Bagabuyo before the murder, reminding him to bag everything after, not to bring his mobile phone or E-watch, turn off his GPS and throw his garbage out, Saettler said.
But Swartz said his client purchased the tote to deal with files at his office and the note was used as a reminder of what to do while disposing of the body – not a plan for murder.
“This is someone who picks up a document (and) starts writing out things in a panic of what to do, not someone who, back on March 1, made a decision and weighed out what needs to occur, what steps to take,” Swartz said.
He pointed to evidence that Bagabuyo had texted his daughter and called his girlfriend before the March 11 meeting to tell them he was at his office.
He also noted that when Bagabuyo was arrested he did not have his phones or smartwatch. Those items were later found on his bed at his home, Swartz said.
Saettler said Tuesday during her closing submissions that a law office was an “ideal place” to commit a murder, as there are special conditions for police searches of law offices.
But Swartz said the building, which was under restoration after a fire, would have had contractors and others entering the building and “there is no evidence that Mr. Bagabuyo had been given any advance knowledge of” when people would be coming and going.
Swartz also noted that Bagabuyo had “everyone’s building code” as he had set up the alarm system and could have avoided using his own if he had planned the murder.
Bagabuyo was initially charged with indignity to human remains on March 18, 2022, then charged more than a year later with first-degree murder. He’s been out on bail since July 12, 2023.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 8, 2025.
Brieanna Charlebois, The Canadian Press
