Const. Tara Avila had already spent several hours searching for parking lots on the eastern edge of the city when she stopped her Hamilton police car at 95 Barlake Ave., a skyscraper southwest of Barton Street East and Lake Avenue North.
It was just before 1 p.m. on January 17, 2018 and Holly hamilton he had been missing for several days. Avila was looking for Holly’s white 1996 Ford Escort.
The large parking lot was not secure; anyone could drive down the street. As Avila drove, she spotted Holly’s car parked on the lower level. They had placed it in a place next to a concrete wall.
Avila called for reinforcements by radio. Inside the car he could see a Shop-Vac, a large bag with a yellow lid, and a ladder. He saw what looked like dried blood on the bumper, Avila said in court Thursday.
She was testifying at the second degree murder trial from Justin Dumpfrey, Holly’s on-and-off boyfriend who is accused of killing the 29-year-old sometime between January 14-15, 2018.
On that cold January day, Avila said she noticed one of the back seats of Holly’s car was pushed forward, which gave Avila a look at the trunk; could see the area of a person’s buttocks. Not knowing if Holly might still be alive, the officers opened the trunk. Inside they found Holly’s frozen body.
Avila struggled to keep her voice steady as she described the discovery.
“A woman lying on her right side, was covered with blood all over her torso and head, her left arm covered her face and her shirt and bra were raised towards her head,” Avila said. Holly wore jeans and white socks, next to her feet was a pair of Puma running shoes.
The jury was shown three gruesome images of Holly’s bloody body inside the trunk. They were so upset that some of Holly’s family and friends, who have filled the courtroom every day, temporarily left when Assistant Crown Prosecutor Amber Lepchuk gave a warning.
The court also heard Thursday from several other officers who helped collect and document evidence.
In January 2018, Det. Lauren Troubridge worked in the forensic branch of the Hamilton Police. I was at the Hamilton Central Police Station on the afternoon of January 17 when Holly’s car arrived in tow. His body was still frozen in the trunk and he had to stay there until the next morning when a coroner arrived.
Troubridge showed the jury the seized evidence around 1510 Barton St. E., a red brick apartment building with no elevator where Dumpfrey had a basement unit. This included items found in a large garbage bag outside a neighboring apartment building: cleaning supplies, gloves, rags, receipts for new toiletries, torn pieces of floor trim, and the bleach-stained jacket that belonged to the daughter. from Holly. Blood swabs were taken from the inside of the bathtub and from other items, including Holly’s car keys found in a garbage bag.
In an audio recording of earlier courtroom testimony, Det. Tamara McGillivray, who was unable to appear in person in court, described a series of photographs from inside Dumpfrey’s small bachelor apartment.
They showed an untidy and sparsely furnished room. But the bathroom was clean, with a new shower curtain, a bath mat, and a rug in front of the toilet. A receipt was found in the trash that included new cleaning supplies. The Crown has alleged that blood and evidence of cleansing blood were found in the bathroom.
The court has already heard that Holly and Dumpfrey had a volatile relationship, including two previous convictions against Dumpfrey for assaulting her. Angela, Holly’s mother, her sister Stacie, and her best friend Sarah Pellerin described Holly as fearing Dumpfrey, but also wanting to keep the peace for the sake of their four-year-old daughter.
Holly and her daughter went out on the night of January 14, 2018. Holly never returned and her daughter was abruptly dropped off the following night at her grandmother’s door by a man Angela said was Dumpfrey. His body was discovered two days later.
Nicole O’Reilly is a Hamilton reporter covering crime and justice for The Spectator. Contact her by email: [email protected]
Reference-www.thestar.com