‘The whole situation was messed right up’: drug dealer testifies at Prince Albert murder trial

As per testimony heard earlier this week and at Kyle Burns’s trial last May, Byron Bear was one of multiple men who had gone to the Midtown area home to help collect a $1,300 drug debt and had attempted to set Farrow’s car on fire.

Inside the Midtown area residence were Farrow, his brother Kyle Burns, Daniel Oliver, Riley Primeau and Jackson Henry.

Byron Lee Bear was reported missing on Dec. 6, 2021 and his remains were found roughly two months later near Rosthern. (Prince Albert Police Service)

About an hour prior to the shooting, Farrow, who had been downstairs in his room, consuming cough syrup and Xanax, received multiple text messages and phone calls warning some people were coming over to cause trouble.

After answering the final call, Farrow would retrieve a sawed off shotgun from behind his computer desk and bring it upstairs to where the others were gathered.

“I gave it to Daniel, right in his hands,” Farrow testified.

Farrow then retreated back downstairs and while in his room would hear what sounded like eight to 10 gun shots, including one loud bang which he attributed to the gun he had given Oliver.

However upon cross-examination from Loree Richardson, Farrow acknowledged he could not be sure.

Also part of Farrow’s testimony, was an explanation how after the gunshots ended, he went upstairs to see what happened.

Upon seeing Bear’s body lying near the driveway, it was Farrow who dragged the body closer to the car and helped lift it into the trunk. Farrow, who could not recall seeing any blood or signs of injury, said Bear’s face was covered by a black mask and they covered the head with a garbage bag.

Farrow also insisted he did not want to drive and tried to hand his car keys over to someone else.

“They said I have to, it’s your car,” he said.

Pools of blood were found in the driveway area, as well as a jerry can and a car jack which is visible in the snow. (Nigel Maxwell/ paNOW Staff)

After leaving Prince Albert, Farrow, along with Oliver and Henry, drove to a remote location south of Rosthern, and dumped the body. From there they travelled to Saskatoon and spent the day at Daniel Oliver’s mom’s house.

While in the city, Farrow explained they took a taxi to buy a new phone and also went to Winners to get some new clothes.

Later that night, Farrow used his new phone to call a friend in Prince Albert and offered to pay her $400 if she would come and get him.

Earlier in the afternoon, Farrow’s car, which reeked of gasoline and had a smashed out window from when Byron Bear had originally attempted to start it on fire, was reported to police and towed.

From the time last May when Farrow testified at Kyle Burns’s trial and at the preliminary inquiry hearing, to when he re-took this stand this week, there were a number of inconsistencies noted with respect to his recollection of events. Farrow had also previously denied any involvement in the drug trade, however on Friday, admitted he and his brother were selling cocaine.

When police searched the home, $5,000 was found under Farrow’s mattress, along with multiple ounces of cocaine which Farrow said were worth about $1,300 per ounce.

And while Farrow attributed the gaps in memory to the simple passing of time, he also admitted he was initially scared to tell the truth.

“I didn’t want to come to terms with the truth,” he told Crown Prosecutor Shawn Blackman. “But this was the only way this stuff was gonna proceed.”

During Riley Primeau’s testimony this week, he said he heard Oliver say “I got him.” This was also initially supported by Farrow, but then acknowledged to Loree Richardson he was not upstairs when it was said and may have actually heard “we got him.”

The events leading up to the shooting

In the weeks and months leading up to Bear’s death, there had been a number of violent altercations both at the house as well as between the two groups of people.

One of those was a robbery at the house where Farrow had a knife held to his throat and the people responsible made off with cash and drugs.

Farrow, who acknowledged the robbery was not reported to police, and that he knew the intruders, said he and Kyle had bought some guns soon after. One of those guns, a sawed-off shotgun, was described as their “problem solver.”

On the stand this week, Riley Primeau recalled a personal encounter he had with Byron Bear and the man to whom Oliver owed the drug debt.

After demanding to know where Oliver was, the man would proceed to assault Primeau to the point of knocking him unconscious.

Not long after, Farrow and Oliver agreed to meet the man at 7-11 and pay the debt. Along the way they picked up two other men and Farrow said it was Oliver who suggested that instead of paying the man, they should kidnap and kill him.

“We gotta get rid of this (expletive),” Farrow replied when asked what Oliver said.

At the meeting point, both groups of men pulled out guns and standoff occurred that lasted one or two minutes. Both vehicles departed without any shots being fired.

What’s next?

At the conclusion of Farrow’s testimony, the trial which has been scheduled to last two weeks, was adjourned to Monday morning.

Daniel Oliver is out on bail and was supported in court by a family member.

Multiple members of Byron Bear’s family were also present and were observed wiping away tears as Farrow recounted how they disposed of his body.

Jackson Henry, another co-accused, is next to take the stand and his testimony and cross-examination could very likely take up most of the day.

His own trial has been scheduled to start on Feb. 24.

Henry had also testified at the Kyle Burns trial. In addition to being at the home when the shooting occurred, it’s been alleged Henry disposed of the guns.

nigel.maxwell@pattisonmedia.com

On X: @nigelmaxwell

by Nigel Maxwell

‘The whole situation was messed right up’: drug dealer testifies at Prince Albert murder trial

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