‘Robbery gone wrong’ led to death, trial hears

A jury trial began Monday at Saskatoon Court of Queen’s Bench in connection with the death of 35-year-old Johnathon KeenatchLafond, who was stabbed during what the Crown called a “robbery gone wrong.”

Keith Clarence Napope, 31, is accused of being involved with the home invasion and contributing to Keenatch-Lafond’s death. He is charged with manslaughter and robbery.

Court heard the victim was running a small-scale drug operation in an apartment in the 1400 block of 20th Street West when he was attacked and stabbed shortly after midnight on Nov. 17, 2014.

In his opening statement to the jury, Crown prosecutor Sandeep Bains said the victim’s nephew had gone downstairs to meet potential drug customers. A group of people overtook him and got into Keenatch-Lafond’s suite, which he shared with his 95-year-old father.

Bains said “chaos erupted” and Keenatch-Lafond was stabbed twice: once in the leg and once in the trunk, which court heard was the fatal wound. The Crown’s theory is that two men were involved in the stabbing.

Napope was charged nine months later. Bains said while the victim’s nephew did not know the assailants, he later recognized Napope at a hospital.

Evidence will show that samples taken from a T-shirt contained DNA from both the victim and Napope, Bains told the jury.

The Crown’s first witness, Sgt. Lorne Keen, a forensic identification officer with Saskatoon police, testified that bloodstains were found inside the front entrance of the apartment, on the outside of the apartment door, in the stairwell and on the building ’s exterior door.

During cross-examination, Keen said he did not notice any surveillance cameras on the outside of the apartment building. He said four cameras were located inside the victim’s suite, along with multiple cellphones, drug paraphernalia and a substance believed to be methamphetamine.

The trial is scheduled to last 10 days.