After six years, the murder trial for Peter Beckett began on Tuesday morning in BC Supreme Court in Kamloops.
Beckett, a former New Zealand politician, is accused of killing his wife Laura Letts-Beckett near Revelstoke in August 2010.
Allegedly, the two were fishing on Upper Arrow Lake when Letts-Beckett fell off of the inflatable boat and drowned.
Letts-Beckett, 50, from Westlock, Alberta, met Beckett while vacationing in New Zealand. The two returned to Westlock and married shortly after.
Justice Ian Meiklem began the day off by addressing the 14-member jury, reminding them to take careful notes as the trial is expected to last until March.
Beckett, seated behind his defense attorney Donna Turko, then entered his not guilty plea. To accommodate his large size, Beckett was not required to sit in the prisoner’s box and was also transported into the courtroom by wheelchair.
Crown Prosecutor, Sarah Firestone, offered her opening remarks which outlined the case against Beckett.
She presented Letts-Beckett, who was an elementary school teacher in Westlock, as a “small town girl” with a troubled love life.
Firestone also told the jury that Beckett killed his wife for financial gain, citing insurance money, family inheritance, pension salary, a house, and a luxury vehicle as the payoff.
The trial will include over 50 witnesses including RCMP officers, witnesses on scene, and family members.
The first witness called on Tuesday was Beth Letts – mother of Letts-Beckett.
Letts described her daughter as a “gifted musician” and a people pleaser. She said Beckett and the family got along “reasonably well” and that he along with Letts-Beckett visited often.
Letts also described being alongside her daughter when she separated from Beckett for three months in 2007. She went along with her daughter when she filed a police report against Beckett for physical abuse in September 2007.
Letts recalled that her daughter grew somewhat distant from her after she reunited with Beckett in January of 2008.
Letts was informed of her daughter’s death in August 2010 after a phone call from Beckett.
While not initially a suspect, Beckett was arrested in August 2011 after an extensive investigation.
Beckett is also being charged of counselling to commit an indictable offence while in custody. Beckett’s jail cell roommate told RCMP officers that Beckett was attempting to arrange the murder of five witnesses while in prison, including Beth Letts. He will also be called to testify against Beckett.
