A fight between two women at a Burnaby apartment two years ago has ended with a murder conviction.
Last week, a jury in B.C. Supreme Court found Trudy Gail Hunter guilty of second degree murder in the death of Christina Docherty.
The case goes back to Dec. 2, 2013, when Docherty, 61, was found dead in her apartment as a result of what was later determined to be an altercation with another women.
Hunter was arrested in Maple Ridge in April 2014 and charged with second degree murder.
Her trial spanned several weeks in January and February.
Officers discovered Docherty’s body in an apartment in the 4900 block of Hastings Street shortly after 4:30 p.m. The department’s major crime unit determined the death was suspicious and called in the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team, which took over the case.
While police wouldn’t provide specific details about the case, the two women knew each other and investigators believe the incident is related to the drug trade.
“This investigation was bolstered by forensic evidence which was paramount to its success,” said IHIT spokesperson Sgt. Stephanie Ashton in a statement. “A guilty verdict reinforces the hard work of IHIT investigators, Burnaby RCMP, our support units in the Lower Mainland and our partners at Crown Counsel. It also speaks to the support of witnesses who came forward to provide information that assisted in putting this matter before the courts.”
Docherty was known to police prior to her murder, but Hunter, who was 60 years-old at the time of her arrest, however, was not known to police and does not have a criminal record.
Hunter is expected to be sentenced on April 4.
