CALGARY — A witness says she was worried about providing evidence against two men accused of killing a popular Calgary chef.
The young woman, who cannot be identified due to a publication ban, was visibly nervous as she continued her testimony at the jury trial of Anthony Dodgson and Tommie Holloway.
The pair have pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder in the death of Christophe Herblin on March 14, 2020.
Court heard Herblin had responded to a call of a break-in at his soon-to-be-opened café in Calgary and was stabbed outside in a parking lot.
The witness told the trial last week that she was in a vehicle with the two accused, who had planned to jump Herblin and steal his keys to gain access to an adjacent cannabis business.
She also testified she had seen both men with knives earlier in the day.
On Wednesday, the Crown revisited parts of the woman's interview with police and asked her why she mentioned Dodgson and that she was in danger.
"I said, I think, I might have put myself in more danger and I was afraid," she said. "I was afraid he would tell other people about me co-operating with the police."
"Is there a word for someone who co-operates with the police?" asked prosecutor Carla MacPhail.
"A rat," the woman replied.
The trial is in its third week.
MacPhail had argued in her opening statement that after Herblin responded to a call about the break-in, police searched and cleared the area, but the suspects later returned.
She said they drove up behind Herblin’s car and broke a window to lure him back outside.
He was stabbed nine times. He managed to walk a short distance to a nearby gas station but later died.
Herblin was a longtime executive sous chef at the Glencoe Golf and Country Club in Calgary. His new business, Croque Saveurs, a French deli and café, was weeks away from opening when he was killed.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Mar. 16, 2022.
Bill Graveland, The Canadian Press
