By Spencer Sterritt

Details of alleged double murder conspiracy emerge as trial begins

May 24, 2016 | 6:20 PM

Imagine trying to prove your spouse is cheating on you, only to find out he’s cheating and planning to kill you.

That’s allegedly what happened to Brigitte Vey according to Crown’s opening submissions on the first day of Curtis Vey and Angela Nicholson’s trial at Prince Albert’s Court of Queen’s Bench. The pair is accused of having an affair and plotting to kill their spouses.

Crown prosecutor Lori O’Connor told the jury when Brigitte suspected her husband was cheating on her after 28 years of marriage, she secretly left a recorder in the house when she wasn’t there, hoping to catch him in the act, or at least talking about the affair.

What she’s said to have found was more shocking: evidence Curtis was conspiring with Nicholson to kill her in a house fire and make it seem like Nicholson’s husband Jim Taylor, who’s she separated from, overdosed.

The recording was turned over to police, leading to Vey and Nicholson’s arrests on July 6, 2013.

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During her statement, Crown said Curtis was aware he was being recorded, though she didn’t elaborate.

Curtis and Nicholson have been jointly charged, which means they cannot lawfully be compelled to testify against one another.

However, Chief Justice Martel Popescul told the jury the joint charge did not mean both Curtis and Nicholson would need to receive the same finding, or sentence if convicted. 

The first witness on the stand, RCMP Cpl. Dereck Wierzbicki, led the investigation into the alleged conspiracy. When questioned by the Crown, he detailed to the jury how investigators built their case after receiving the recording.

Curtis’ defense counsel Aaron Fox pressed Wierzbicki on the investigation and asked if any evidence of a conspiracy had been found on laptops, cell phones or in phone transcripts.

Wierzbicki confirmed the only evidence of the charge was the recording, which is expected to be played in court tomorrow, May 25.

The case is expected to last two weeks, during which Brigitte Vey is expected to take the stand as a Crown witness.

ssterritt@panow.com

On Twitter: @spencer_sterrit