A cellphone belonging to the accused in a 2021 bush party homicide was used to search news reports about the fatal attack and message a former co-accused urging her not to talk to police, the court heard on Friday.
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Special Const. Kimberley Seward, an investigator from the London police digital forensics unit, testified about the details recovered from 13 devices seized by police in the wake of the July 31, 2021, homicide, including the cellphone of Carlos Guerra Guerra, who has pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder in the shooting death of Josue Silva.
Among the devices Seward analyzed were two computers, both belonging to Emily Altmann, 22, who was excused from the trial along with her defence team last week. The jury was instructed by the judge not to speculate on the reasons for her departure from the trial.
The jury on Friday was shown text messages sent from Guerra Guerra’s cellphone that appeared in a conversation saved on a laptop computer belonging to Altmann.
Messages from Guerra Guerra’s cellphone sent July 31, in the aftermath of the fatal shooting, urged Altmann repeatedly to delete the conversation, get a lawyer and not to talk to police.
“Tell everyone keep their f—ing mouths shut,” the message from Guerra Guerra’s phone said.
“Make sure everyone understands to forget the night.”
Messages sent from Altmann’s device to Guerra Guerra’s cellphone in the early morning hours of July 31 said “No one knows who you are,” and threatened suicide, prompting reassuring responses sent from the accused’s device.
“Just stay solid. . . . You don’t know nothing,” the messages sent from Guerra Guerra’s phone said. “This isn’t your fault. . . . Get a lawyer and keep your mouth shut. Don’t say absolutely nothing to police.”
Seward also testified about an 73-page exchange with messages sent from Guerra Guerra’s device to a friend days after the incident. The series of messages, beginning on Aug. 3 at about 9:40 a.m., begins with talk about music before turning to the homicide.
“Some guy got killed at a party that I was at because a (woman) that I’m close with told me that she was uncomfortable,” and told him to come, the message sent from Guerra Guerra’s device said.
“I should have never went.”
The messages sent from Guerra Guerra’s device said he came to pick the young woman up from the party, but she’d forgotten something in the woods so he went in with her to find it.
Violence broke out as he was attempting to leave, the messages said.
“I didn’t involve myself,” one of the messages sent from Guerra Guerra’s cellphone said. “I heard a pop and I deadass booked it. . . . I cut out of that forest so fast.”
The messages sent from Guerra Guerra’s device expressed worry the woman he came to pick up had retained a lawyer and Guerra Guerra, an aspiring rapper, would be a key suspect in the homicide.
“It would be so easy to blame her rapper friend that she told to come,” one of the messages said.
Guerra Guerra, 23, has pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder of Silva, 18, a Western University student who died of a gunshot wound to the abdomen after a bush party in southwest London in the early hours of July 31, 2021.
Guerra Guerra also has pleaded not guilty to assault with a weapon of Logan Marshall, who concluded his testimony earlier this week.
The jury has heard Dylan Schaap, 23, has pleaded guilty to manslaughter.
The court heard the cellphone belonging to Guerra Guerra was used on July 31 at 9:05 p.m. to search “18 year old dead” in a internet browser and opened a London Free Press article about the bush party homicide. Shortly after, the phone opened a Blackburn News article and CBC London story about the incident near Pack Road and Grand Oak Crossing.
A Free Press story about paramedics initially thinking a partier was hit by a firework was shared in a group conversation on Snapchat that was recovered from Guerra Guerra’s phone, the court heard Friday. A message sent from Guerra Guerra’s device said Silva “could’ve lived” if responding paramedics “took it more serious.”
“I know ya’ll got me,” the message sent from Guerra Guerra’s device said, later including three ‘fingers-crossed’ emojiis.
Seward provided in-depth details of how specific cellphones were linked to Guerra Guerra, Altmann and others and various social media profiles belonging to each.
The court Friday morning also heard testimony from Crown witness Det. Const. Victoria Reynolds, who took the statement from Logan Marshall at Victoria Hospital hours after the altercation.
During the nearly 40-minute interview, Reynolds said she noticed Marshall’s legs were “shaking uncontrollably” and he clearly was “shaken up” from what had happened.
Reynolds did not see any physical injuries on Marshall but testified “he told me that his head hurt and he felt dizzy.”
Guerra Guerra’s defence lawyer Ricardo Golec did not cross-examine Reynolds.
The trial continues Monday.