Accused handled cord used to strangle victim, trial hears

In a video recorded shortly after his arrest, a man on trial for first-degree murder admitted to police he handed the cord used to strangle the victim, a jury heard Friday.

James David Junior Charlie faces the count in the January 2012 death of Fribjon Bjornson on the Nakazdli reserve just south of Fort St. James.

The admission came near the end of a roughly seven-hour session with investigators.

The court has heard Bjornson had gone to a home on the reserve during the early morning hours of Jan. 12, 2012 and once inside, he was set upon by four men – Charlie, Wesley Duncan, Jesse Bird and a man whose name is protected by a courtordered publication ban.

In the interview, Charlie claimed minimal involvement in the attack. While the other three carried out the beating in the home’s basement, Charlie said he left the scene and took off in Bjornson’s truck.

When asked what prompted the four to turn on Bjornson, Charlie said “things got out of hand” and he had left the home because he was angry.

He said he returned a couple hours later and found Bjornson lying on the floor. Although bruised and bleeding, Charlie said Bjornson got up and tried to take a swing at him. Charlie said he responded with a punch and, once Bjornson was back down, kicked him in the side.

He recalled Bjornson making a “snoring sound” as he lied on the floor.

When it was suggested they “finish him off,” Charlie said he cut a cord out of the basement rafters and handed it to Duncan, then ran upstairs rather than watch what happened next.

“I wouldn’t be able to do that, I can’t,” Charlie said.

A subdued and often sobbing Charlie spoke quietly and often reluctantly as investigators worked to get his side of the story. Much of the time was spent playing recordings of co-accused telling undercover officers their accounts of what happened.

Whenever Charlie provided a detail, he was commended for owning up and getting a weight off his shoulders.

“You’re making a great stride, you’re just moving on in your journey, it’s a tough journey,” one of the officers told him at one point.

A good portion of the interview was spent trying to get details on how Bjornson’s body was dealt with in the aftermath and why his head was chopped off and left in an abandoned home next door.

Charlie, who has pleaded guilty to indignity to a dead body, said Bird was the one who carried out the act. He mumbled a vague answer when an officer suggested Bjornson’s head was removed so they could more easily remove the victim’s shirt as it was frozen solid because the body has been left out in the snow for a period.

At one point, Charlie gave a telltale sign with his hands. Told by an officer that it’s not easy to get rid of a dead body but still easier than saying he was there at the time of Bjornson’s death, Charlie stressed he wasn’t there but made a motion with his fists and arms as if he was tying something up. Repeating the motion to Charlie, the officer said “it’s something James, we sometimes do, something in our conscience.”

The trial continues on Monday.