A former lawyer from Kamloops, B.C., accused of first-degree murder, says he should only be convicted of manslaughter.
Butch Bagabuyo is on trial for killing Thompson Rivers University instructor Mohd Abdullah, 60, in 2022.
Abdullah hired Bagabuyo for his 2016 divorce and transferred a large sum of money to him in order to keep it away from his ex-wife.
The Crown alleges Bagabuyo spent more than $770,000 of the money Abdullah gave him on personal expenses.
When Abdullah tried to get his money back, Bagabuyo killed him, the court heard.
Additional details were heard in the courtroom on Tuesday, including that Bagabuyo was in debt and under audit by the law society.
Crown prosecutor Ann Saettler argued on Tuesday that there is strong evidence to convict Bagabuyo of first-degree murder, including multiple items purchased, a trail of emails and turning off cameras in his backyard before the killing took place.
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Abdullah was found dead in a white rental van on Monterey Place on March 17, 2022. He had last been seen on March 11, and was reported missing several days later when he didn’t show up for work.
On Monday, Bagabuyo’s lawyer told the court his client admitted to killing Abdullah, but it was manslaughter, not murder.
–with files from Rumina Daya, Global News
© 2025 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
