Hugh McColl wrapped up his testimony Wednesday by being questioned about what he did in the days and weeks after killing Kate Reid.
The accused murderer appeared to be thoughtful and thorough on the stand, giving his answers in great detail.
He admits to killing Reid, his roommate, on Jan. 2, 2015, but has argued that it was in self-defence after she attacked him with a knife.
Testifying Wednesday, he fielded questions from the Crown about his actions after Reid’s death.
After killing his roommate, McColl said, he took her body out to the balcony and kept it there for more than three weeks.
On Jan. 27, jurors heard, he dropped the body down to the ground – after pouring hot water on it to get it unstuck from the balcony – and dragged it over to some nearby hedges.
“I felt I had to get her off the balcony,” he said.
“I didn’t want her to be found there.”
The Crown took issue with McColl’s claim that he thawed Reid’s body by pouring five or six kettlesful of water on them, arguing that it actually took two days for the remains to thaw.
McColl told jurors that he ended up moving into an apartment on Wendy Crescent, then leaving Kitchener for a while.
When he returned and saw police at the Burn Place apartment he had shared with Reid, he said, he took the battery out of his cell phone and once again left Kitchener.
“I knew I couldn’t go back to Wendy Crescent,” he said.
McColl said he ended up living out of his car and planning a move to Toronto, which is where he was when he was arrested for Reid’s murder.
The trial also heard Wednesday from Judda Heiler, who lived with Reid in 2010.
She testified that she eventually moved out because of issues with Reid’s drinking and erratic behaviour – doing things like hiding a steak knife in the living room couch.
McColl has pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder and guilty to indecently interfering with human remains.
The trial resumes next Monday with closing arguments.
With reporting from Allison Tanner
