The murder trial of the man accused of killing Port Coquitlam teenager Breann Voth has taken an unexpected twist with the appearance of a reluctant witness who once told police a bizarre tale of seeing a woman raped near a river.
The witness, Stella Malloway, told Mounties searching for Ms. Voth's killer that a man with a fetish for flashlights abducted the teenager from a street and sexually attacked her with the instrument.
It was a strange turn in the emotional murder trial of Derek Post, 24, which, until yesterday, was unfolding quickly, with the Crown wrapping its case in only two days.
The Crown's strongest evidence was the testimony of a DNA expert, who said that DNA in semen taken from Ms. Voth's body matched Mr. Post's.
Ms. Voth was 19 when she was killed on Dec. 7, 2002, on her way to catch a 5:45 a.m. bus for an early shift at a Home Depot where she worked part-time.
Her nude body was found about four hours later, face down in the shallows of the Coquitlam River. She had been sexually assaulted, strangled and drowned.
While the DNA evidence was a blow to Mr. Post's defence, Mr. Post's lawyer, Peter Wilson, suggested yesterday that up to five other people might have been involved in the abduction and attack on Ms. Voth.
Earlier this week, the trial heard that police arrested a man and woman in a jeep parked near the spot where Ms. Voth's body was found. The man, Wallace Brunt, was wearing a mini-skirt and pantyhose, and sporting a Mohawk haircut.
Police searched the jeep and found pornographic magazines and videos, crack cocaine and drug paraphernalia. A pair of muddy wet jeans also was in the vehicle.
Mr. Brunt and his companion were later released.
Ms. Malloway's story to police was revealed yesterday in court by RCMP Corporal Grant Wong, who outlined her original statement.
Two months after Ms. Voth was found dead, Ms. Malloway told police that she saw Mr. Brunt abduct the young woman from a street near the river and sexually attack her with a flashlight. She also told police that flashlights were a fetish for Mr. Brunt.
Ms. Malloway told police Mr. Brunt cut his hair into a Mohawk style the day of the attack.
Cpl. Wong also testified that in January, 2003, another man told police that his father, a drug addict, confessed to killing Ms. Voth. The son said his father told him that two others were in involved, including a man named Walt.
Terry Spletzer told police that his father, Phillip Spletzer, told him that the attack "was fun . . . with a twisted mind like that."
That allegation was made before it was made public that Ms. Voth was autistic, Cpl. Wong testified.
Ms. Malloway's statement and other tips prompted police to take a second look at Mr. Brunt and three of his friends as prime suspects in the high-profile murder probe, the officer said.
Police wiretapped the phones of Mr. Brunt and the three friends, including Phillip Spletzer and another man, Raymond Goulet. They bugged Mr. Brunt's home and once followed Phillip Spletzer to Provincial Court in Port Coquitlam and picked up a cigarette butt he discarded to obtain his DNA.
Police also searched Mr. Brunt's home and found eight flashlights, including two in his bedroom and one under his pillow, the officer said.
However, DNA samples from Mr. Brunt, Mr. Spletzer and Mr. Goulet did not match the semen found on Ms. Voth's body, Cpl. Wong noted.
Late yesterday, Ms. Malloway was called as a witness. She admitted she was afraid to come to court and said her life had been threatened.
The Crown has disputed Ms. Malloway's story, arguing the statement she gave to police was not true.
Mr. Post has pleaded not guilty.