Time of death disputed in murder trial
Witness says suspect asked him to buy a pry bar after wife's body was found

FREDERICTON The pathologist who performed the autopsy on a murder victim last summer placed the time of her death between July 18 and 19, 2003 but the prosecution alleges she was killed July 16, 2003.

In testimony yesterday, Dr. Ken Obenson placed the time of Shaila Akther Bari's death between 72 and 96 hours before the time when her body was discovered on July 22, 2003.

Accused of Shaila Bari's murder is her estranged husband, Abdul Bari, 36, of Fredericton but originally from Bangladesh.

His Court of Queen's Bench jury trial began Sept. 7 and is expected to continue throughout this month.

The prosecution previously called a number of witnesses to establish that Shaila Bari hadn't been seen after the evening of July 15, 2003, and hadn't answered her cellphone after that date.

Obenson's opinion as to the time of death was elicited when he was cross-examined yesterday by defence lawyer Randy Maillet.

Crown prosecutor William Corby questioned Obenson further about the time of death, asking how precise the process of making such a determination can be.

Obenson said without an eyewitness to a death, it's difficult to nail down the time of death precisely.

"It's essentially making a well-educated guess as to when it happened," he said.

Corby asked if it was possible the time of death could have been earlier than the July 18-19 timeframe the pathologist established.

"I guess in medicine, anything is possible," Obenson said, but he was comfortable with his conclusions.

The pathologist also testified that wounds to the victim's right ear are consistent with the prongs on a pry bar found near the crime scene.

He said the injuries to the ear are symmetrical, so he suspected they resulted from a single blow.

The dimensions of the prongs on the pry bar roughly match the dimensions of the small wounds on the ear, he said.

"It could have been used to inflict the injury on the ear," he said.

Under cross-examination, Obenson testified he couldn't swear the pry bar was definitely the weapon used in the murder.

The cause of death was a combination of sharp and blunt force trauma and suffocation, he said.

A sharp force trauma is the sort of injury that arises from an edged weapon, and blunt force trauma arises from a beating with fists or some kind of blunt instrument.

Obenson said the suffocation arose as a result of pillows being placed over the victim's face.

He also detailed the nature of her injuries.

He said her jaw was fractured in two or three places, the result of blunt force trauma. He said blood had come out of her nostrils and mouth.

The bone behind her right ear was exposed, Obenson said, and four of her ribs were fractured, which would take "considerable force."

There were no fractures of the skull, he said, and no hemorrhages of the brain.

"The heart looked normal, and most of the other organs were decomposing."

He said there was also evidence of decomposition on her right ear.

Obenson said there was no visible physical evidence of a violent sexual encounter.

A police video shown in court last week showed two blue pillows had been stacked on the victim's face as she lay dead in her bed in her apartment.

A co-worker of Abdul Bari testified yesterday that Bari asked him to buy a pry bar identical to the murder weapon for him after the murder.

The pry bar was found Sept. 27, 55 metres from the dead woman's apartment.

The Crown has promised the jury it will prove that Bari bought the pry bar hours before the murder and has introduced a debit-card transaction record from Canadian Tire.

However, a police witness previously testified an identical pry bar was found in Abdul Bari's apartment.

Yesterday, Jonathan Johnston, who was acquainted with the accused because they had both worked at the Sheraton Fredericton Hotel (now the Delta Fredericton Hotel), testified he ran into Bari a day or two after his wife's body was discovered.

"He looked very upset or sad," Johnston said. "I asked him how he was doing, and he said, "Not very well."'

He testified he and Bari chatted a little about work and about the discovery of a body in his estranged wife's apartment.

"Abdul asked at that point if I would go out and purchase a crowbar for him," Johnston said.

Johnston said he asked why Bari needed a crowbar and why he couldn't buy it himself.

Bari said he feared for his safety and wanted to get something for his protection, Johnston said.

"He said he would really be more comfortable if someone else would get the crowbar for him," he said.

Bari said the police were following him at the time, Johnston said.

He turned down Bari's request to buy the crowbar.