Bail hearing begins for slaying suspect
Man charged in death of wife
Greg Mitchell Fertuck, the 66-year-old man accused of killing his estranged wife Sheree in 2015, is seeking bail at Saskatoon Court of Queen’s Bench.
A hearing began Thursday to determine if Fertuck should be released while awaiting his firstdegree murder trial. The hearing is scheduled to continue on June 2.
Sheree, 51, was last seen driving out to a gravel pit near Kenaston on Dec. 7, 2015. Her work truck was later found at the pit, with her keys, cellphone and jacket left inside the cab.
RCMP arrested Fertuck nearly four years later, in 2019, after what they called a “complex investigation.” He is charged with murder and offering an indignity to human remains in connection with the disappearance and death of Sheree, whose body has not been found.
Fertuck, wearing an orange jail T-shirt, sat in a Plexiglas-lined prisoner’s area during the hearing. At one point he jumped up and asked the court to turn down the volume of audio exhibits that were being played, saying it was too loud.
This bail hearing is being run similarly to a preliminary hearing in that Crown prosecutor Cory Bliss is calling evidence. Usually, bail hearings only involve lawyers making arguments for and against an accused person’s release.
Fertuck was committed in January to stand trial following a nearly two-week preliminary hearing in Saskatoon provincial court, where 25 witnesses testified, including police officers, people familiar with Fertuck and people who spoke with Sheree before she was killed.
Preliminary hearings determine whether there is sufficient evidence to send a case to trial. The process is similar to a trial, with witnesses testifying and evidence presented, but the information is subject to a publication ban to ensure it doesn’t taint the jury pool. The automatic election on murder charges is trial by judge and jury, but no trial dates have been set at this time.
For the same reason, defence lawyer Michael Nolin requested a publication ban on the details presented at Thursday’s bail hearing. Only the outcome of the hearing is reportable.
Fertuck is also represented by defence lawyer Morris Bodnar. Outside court, Bodnar said COVID-19 concerns in jail contributed to the defence making an application for interim release.
“Can I get into the jail? Probably not. Can I review the disclosure with my client? No. Can I do it over the phone? Absolutely not because they’re all recorded. How do you prepare for this trial? That is a huge problem that we’re having,” Bodnar said.
Justice Grant Currie will make his bail decision at the hearing’s conclusion.
Can I review the disclosure with my client? ... How do you prepare for this trial? That is a huge problem that we’re having.