An alleged murder weapon was a source of controversy today at the murder trial of a Dartmouth cab driver.
The defence has begun poking holes in the credibility of a key witness in the case against the man accused of killing Sergei Kostin in January 2009.
Kostin, a 40-year-old native of Ukraine, was killed after he picked up a fare at a convenience store in Dartmouth.
His burned-out cab was found in North Preston a few days after he disappeared, although Kostin’s body wasn’t recovered until April, about a kilometre from his car.
Chaze Lamar Thompson was charged with first-degree murder in Kostin’s death in January 2010.
The 22-year-old Dartmouth man has pleaded not guilty and his cousin, Wayne MacEvoy, is the key witness in the case.
Yesterday, MacEvoy testified that he was with Thompson in the cab when Kostin was killed.
Today’s proceedings in Nova Scotia Supreme Court started with the identification of exhibits, which include the gun MacEvoy alleges was used to kill Kostin.
Before the defence could begin cross-examination, the jury was cautioned by the judge to disregard references to several issues when it came to assessing MacEvoy’s credibility as a witness.
MacEvoy told the court he had spent time in a witness protection program and also testified regarding his immunity from prosecution agreement.
Defence lawyer Patrick MacEwen said he had trouble with previous statements made by MacEvoy, both to police and in court, because he seemed to give different accounts about when he had first seen the gun.
MacEvoy seemed to show signs of stress during cross-examination, blinking rapidly and leaning forward in his chair.
MacEwen also questioned the reliability of MacEvoy’s memory. MacEvoy admitted to smoke marijuana several times a day at the time of the murder.
The defence is expected to continue its cross-examination of the witness tomorrow.
With files from CTV Atlantic's Ron Shaw
