The case against the 24-year-old Duncan man accused of murdering Tyeshia Jones and Karrie Ann Stone will go directly to trial in B.C. Supreme Court.
On Thursday, prosecutor Scott Van Alstine said the Crown had decided to proceed by direct indictment in the case against William Gordon Robert Elliott.
As a result, Elliott will go to trial without a preliminary hearing, which was scheduled for the weeks of April 22 and May 13.
Usually, a preliminary hearing is held to determine whether there is enough evidence to proceed to trial. However, the attorney general or deputy attorney general can order that a case be dealt with by direct indictment if it is in the public interest.
Elliott is charged with two counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of 18-year-old Jones and 42-year-old Stone. Elliott’s next appearance is scheduled for March 25 at 10 a.m. A date for his trial could be set at that time.
Stone’s charred body was found July 12, 2010, in a wooded area in Glenora, southwest of Duncan. She lived at the Super 8 motel on the Trans-Canada Highway in Duncan.
Friends said she struggled with drug addiction, but was trying to turn her life around.
Stone was last seen at the motel about 7 p.m. on July 7, 2010. Her body was found five days later.
Jones went missing Jan. 22, 2011, after leaving a friend’s party. She was heading toward the Superstore on the Trans-Canada Highway to meet a friend when she disappeared. Her naked body was found Jan. 28, 2011, in a wooded area near the Shaker Church cemetery off Indian Road on Cowichan Tribes land.
The motive and causes of death have not been disclosed. Duncan RCMP would not say whether the crimes were sexually motivated.
First-degree murder charges can be laid if a killing was planned and premeditated, but can also be laid if the killing happened during a sexual assault or when the victim was unlawfully confined.
Elliott, who is married with children, was arrested at his Mission Road home on April 20, 2012.
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