According to testimony heard in court, Kyle Burns and his brother lived at the house where the shooting occurred and sold cocaine. (Nigel Maxwell/ paNOW Staff)

By Nigel Maxwell

Court proceedings

Prince Albert murder trial hears shooting triggered in part by $1,300 drug debt

Apr 30, 2024 | 5:00 PM

A fatal shooting that occurred outside a Prince Albert home, was prompted in part by a $1,300 drug debt and was in retaliation to a group of people who had shown up to cause trouble.

That’s according to testimony heard on Tuesday at the Kyle Burns murder trial.

In early December, 2021, Byron Bear was reportedly one of several people who went to the midtown residence, and after dumping gasoline in the back of the Black Mercedes, was shot in the head by someone firing from the house. As many as five men were in the house at the time and at least four had taken up positons near the open door, armed with shotguns and a handgun.

Bear’s body was then loaded into the back of the car, and dropped off at a rural location outside Rosthern.

Raine Farrow, one of five men subsequently charged with the murder, and who had been living at the house with his brother Kyle Burns, recounted how on the morning Bear was shot, was downstairs getting high at his computer, consuming pills and cough syrup.

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“I was pretty intoxicated,” Farrow admitted.

However when multiple people showed up at the house, warning there were people coming to cause trouble, Farrow then provided two of the men with guns. Kyle Burns, who also lived at the house, and who had been sitting on the upstairs couch, got up and pulled a shotgun out from under the cushion.

Farrow said he then retreated back down stairs and lay down on his bed.

“I was scared, extremely scared,” he testified.

Not long after, Farrow recalled hearing eight to 10 gun shots, and after running upstairs to see what had occurred, saw a body lying behind the car. Farrow explained he then dragged the body to the side of the car and proceeded to kick the person in the head multiple times.

“I didn’t know who Byron Bear was at the time,” he explained.

When asked why he kicked the body, Farrow initially replied he did not know, then added it was probably fueled by drugs and a desire to see if there was still any life left in him.

Farrow also recalled how soon after he was instructed by another man, Riley Primeau, to load the body into the back of the car. A garbage bag was also used to cover Bear’s head.

“I tried to give [Primeau] my keys,” Farrow said, noting how he did not want anything to do with it but was told he had to drive because it was his car.

From there, Farrow explained how he and Riley proceeded to get in the car and followed a white Chrysler car to an address on 22nd Street E. After some discussion whether to take the body north or south, it was decided they should drive to Saskatoon, as one of the men had family there.

Near Rostern, Farrow turned off on a back road and drove for about three to four kilometers, before stopping. He then explained how he and the two other men in the car and shared the task of taking the body out of the trunk and dropping it beside the road.

This testimony contradicted evidence given on Monday by Jackson Henry, who admitted to being in the car but denied ever touching the body or even knowing it was there.

The three men then drove to a house in Saskatoon, stopping only once to pick up some duct tape to repair the window that had been smashed earlier by Bear.

Farrow estimated he was at the house in Saskatoon until the evening, and after his car got towed, called a former co-worker who took him back to Prince Albert.

Cross examination

After confirming he was Kyle Burns’s brother and had also known two of the other accused for a lengthy period of time, Farrow confirmed for defence lawyer Evan Strelioff he could easily identify all their voices.

He also confirmed it was one of the other men, not Burns, who he heard taking responsibility for shooting Bear.

“I got him, I got that mother (expletive),” Farrow said when describing what he heard.

Farrow also told Strelioff he did not think his brother ever left the couch area.

Earlier in the day, Jackson Henry was also cross-examined by Strelioff and admitted that his public recounting of the events, was the first time he had done so.

And Henry, who was arrested months after the others, was also asked how he heard about the others.

“I seen it on paNOW,” he said.

And when asked why he did not go to the police earlier, Henry explained he did not want to go to jail for something he didn’t do, and wanted to instead spend the time with his family. Henry, who had also been intoxicated at the time of the shooting, was asked by Strelioff whether it’s possible he mixed up some details.

“I could be,” Henry replied.

According to the agreed of facts and testimony heard in court, the man owed drug money was present during the shooting but was neither Burns nor Bear. Farrow, who confirmed he knew the man, described him as a “big bad drug dealer”, who was always carrying a weapon.

While Primeau has previously been sentenced to eight years for manslaughter, admitting to shooting one of the guns into the air, one of the key questions that remains is who actually shot Bear.

Also charged in the case was Daniel Oliver, who also testified on Tuesday. He said when he showed up the house and was told what was happening, he suggested they get out of there and go get a hotel room.

Oliver will be cross-examined on Wednesday when the trial resumes.

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nigel.maxwell@pattisonmedia.com

On X: @nigelmaxwell