Graphic testimony opens Saretzky trial
Triple murder trial begins
The trial of a Blairmore man accused of three murders is underway in Lethbridge. Derek Saretzky entered “not guilty” pleas for three counts of murder in relation to the deaths of Terry Blanchette, his daughter, two-year-old Hailey Dunbar-Blanchette, and Hanne Meketech. He also pleaded not guilty to performing an indignity to a body in relation to Dunbar-Blanchette.
Saretzky previously confessed to all three killings, and even took police to a remote site where they believe Dunbar-Blanchette’s body was destroyed.
His lawyer, Patrick Edgerton, said it was important to remember Canadians have the right to a trial and jury, despite the allegations.
“They still have to prove all the elements beyond a reasonable doubt,” he said.
“Over the next few weeks we’ll see how the evidence comes out. There are still reliability issues when it comes to confessions.”
The jury heard through a statement of agreed facts that Blanchette was found by his father William at about 11 a.m. on Sept. 14, 2015.
Blanchette had received wounds to his head and his throat had been cut. He was on his back, clothed, and partially covered by a blanket in the bathroom of his home.
Police found bloodstains on Blanchette’s bed, pillows and on the floor, which led them to believe the initial attack took place in his bedroom. Blood was found throughout the home, including on a doll’s head and in Dunbar-Blanchette’s crib.
A van identified as being of interest in the case tested positive for blood. It was a van Saretzky was suspected of having taken in the past, and a neighbour told police they heard a child crying at about 3:30 a.m. behind the Blanchette residence. The van had been seen in the area around the time of the murder.
Small bones were discovered in a firepit at a campsite partially owned by the Saretzky family. While DNA could not be confirmed on the bones, blood found nearby was identified as belonging to Dunbar-Blanchette. A search of the firepit also revealed a non-serrated knife, a hatchet, burned books, and evidence that fabric and rubber soles had been burned.
Police found a pot near the firepit which contained blood drops or smears, and a child’s toy with blood on it was also discovered.
The blood on both items was identified as belonging to Dunbar-Blanchette.
The bones were examined and deemed to have come from a human child between two and four years of age. Several of the bones contained cut marks made by a tool.
Saretzky’s home was searched based on observations made during an initial search for Dunbar-Blanchette.
Among the items collected by police was a calendar with the words “set me free” in the boxes from Sept. 1 to 9, and the word “strength” from Sept. 13 to 18.
Police recovered a notebook with a page labelled “medicine fresh.” Under the label were the words “Hanneh,” “Sleepers for the dogs,” “Chy,” “Terry,” and “the hideous baby.” All of the words were crossed out.
Police found numerous true crime and fiction books about serial killers and cold case files.
A measuring cup was found with Saretzky’s own blood dried in the bottom of it.
A crowbar and baseball bat were recovered from the home.
In Saretzky’s mother’s home, police found a green backpack with pages in it from “The Killer Book of Serial Killers.”
Witnesses called on the first day of testimony revolved around the murder of Meketech, however, who was found in her home Sept. 9, prior to the murders of Blanchette and Dunbar-Blanchette.
Meketech was discovered in her underwear with a large wound on the side of her head.
Her neighbour, Ray Labonte, testified he discovered her body after seeing her door open and her two small dogs running around — something that almost never happened in the five and a half years he lived beside her.
Labonte entered the home and saw bloody paw prints throughout the house. He saw Meketech in her room and immediately called the police.
Saretzky’s lawyer Patrick Edgerton asked Labonte if he had seen the door open when he left for work, to which Labonte said he had not noticed.
RCMP Const. Josh Stachow was the first officer on the scene. Upon arriving, he was told by an EMT there was a female in the house who was “obviously deceased.”
“It was like she had collapsed into the corner of the bedroom, and there was a large puddle of blood pooling away from her,” Stachow testified.
He also stated the front door was damaged as might be expected if someone had kicked it in.
Stachow took a number of photos of the residence. Photos of Meketech’s body included one of her dogs.
“The dog was laying on the deceased when we came into the residence,” Stachow said.
Blairmore EMT Amanda Taggart testified she was originally called to a cardiac arrest but when she arrived she noted the pool of blood. She noted Meketech was not breathing, was pulseless, and was “stiff.”
“When I was checking her pulse, her arm was stiff, and unmovable,” she said. The trial continues today. Follow @JWSchnarrHerald on Twitter