chatnewstoday file

By Eli J. Ridder, Regan Tate

UPDATED

Bag with bloodied clothing takes centre stage in Deborah Belyea murder trial, witness suffers apparent panic attack

Jan 10, 2024 | 7:30 AM

The second day of Deborah Belyea’s second-degree murder trial focused on a garbage bag containing bloodied clothing that Belyea tried to get a friend to dispose of before her husband was formally reported missing.

A witness on the stand at day two of Deborah Belyea’s second degree murder trial suffered a panic attack during testimony Wednesday morning while talking about her friendship with the accused.

Shandel Dupal had been friends for five years with Belyea — connected over a shared love for embroidering — before Belyea was arrested and charged with the second-degree murder of her husband and Cypress county councillor Alfred.

The prosecution’s case focused around the black garbage bag containing a sweater, two pairs of pants and other clothing parcels with supposed blood on it that Belyea gave to Dupal to dispose of.

FRIEND ASKED TO TAKE THE BAG

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Dupal visited Deborah at the Belyea residence in Suffield on Thanksgiving Monday in October 2021.

Dupal testified she was only there for about 15 minutes before Deborah asked her to leave so she could sleep.

While Dupal said Belyea’s demeanor came off as sad and tired on the Monday,

Before Dupal left, Belyea asked her to take a regular-sized black garbage bag and throw it out at a dumpster.

Dupal was unable to find the dumpster so she took the garbage bag home with her and forgot about it as she got on with the rest of her day. The bag was emptied with the rest of her vehicle’s trunk as she went out to another activity that night.

Dupal returned Tuesday to support Belyea as a missing persons case started for her husband Alfred Belyea.

Dupal stayed overnight and left late on Wednesday as police filtered in an out collecting information and statements from Belyea.

The garbage bag Deborah gave her had been in her garage since Monday when Dupal had dumped most of what was in her trunk in the garage.

Dupal opened the bag, she testified, and immediately noticed a wet smell. Inside, she found a pair of jeans and a gray cardigan sweater.

Dupal also found a smaller white bag that she opened. She saw a white material with what appeared to be blood on it.

In the context of what she knew was an increasingly serious situation around Alfred’s disappearance, she called the police.

“I saw blood and said ‘nope’,” Dupal told the court.

The prosecution’s final witness of Wednesday and eighth overall, Const. Tyler Risling, photographed the garbage bag as partof the evidence process.

As officers from the RCMP took apart the garbage bag, Risling photographed a gray sweater, floral orange shirt, socks and two pairs of jeans.

Red stains that Risling said appeared to be blood was found on most of the clothing items, along with stains from vegetation and some dirt.

The clothing was identified as made for a female wearer.

BELYEA’S PHYSICAL ABILITY

The prosecution said in its opening statement Tuesday that Belyea killed her husband in their Suffield residence, removed his arms from his body and then dropped it off in a rural location near Piapot, Sask.

Since then, the prosecution has aimed to prove Belyea was physically capable of such an action while the defense has tried to get witnesses to highlight her health issues.

Belyea suffered a stroke around 2001 and has not been the same since in terms of her health, according to multiple witnesses. Belyea started using an assisted oxygen machine in 2009.

Manon Bax, Belyea’s friend for over two decades, said when she visited Belyea on Thanksgiving Sunday of 2021, Belyea was able to come outside her Suffield residence and get medication from Bax.

That contrasted with testimony earlier in the day given by Dupal, who described an incident where police asked Belyea to go off her oxygen support and walk outside later in the week.

Belyea had followed that RCMP officer’s request but it led to severe exhaustion, Dupal said.

“It was not okay,” Dupal said of the officer’s request.