I use to go to New Westminster Quay all the time. When you read stuff like the article below that says she met with Sandra MacDonald there for lunch and they bloody well talked about all this craziness, do you wonder if maybe you were there?! Over heard a bit of it..? What if you were their waiter and heard some of it?
We've all been on the skytrain or bus or even sitting in a restaurant and heard a bit of a conversation that we thought "WTF?! Did I just hear that?!" When do we know to act on it and when do we just file it away as that bit of crazy that happened today?
What if you unknowingly heard bits of the conversation Jean Ann James was having with Sandra MacDonald that same day they had lunch at New Westminster Quay? Or you saw Jean Ann James walking back to her car, five blocks from the murder and thought nothing of it. Suppose you were a teacher at the school where she took the clothing and incinerated it, and saw her walking with the garbage bag past your door, but at the time that didn't seem odd.
Somebody reading this knows more than they realize. Or maybe you do realize. You have an interest in this story for a reason, why? Did you know one of these people? Did you work with one of them? Were you friends or acquaintances? Did you hear or see something that made you wonder all these years?
What if some part of your life, is unknowingly entwined with this story.
We all hear things and see things daily that could be helpful years or decades later in murder trials like this. But where do we draw the line of suspecting everyone around us of being "up to something".
Trust your gut, I say.
Friday, October 28, 2011
Only good that came from the police surveillance was that Derek was behaving himself
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PROVINCE - OCTOBER 27th 2011 - KEITH FRASER
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Former friend testifies accused murderer Jean Ann James ‘very angry’ with husband
A former friend of Jean Ann James says the accused murderer was “very angry and upset” about her husband’s affair with murder victim Gladys Wakabayashi.
James, 72, has pleaded not guilty to the first-degree murder of Wakabayashi, 41, in June 1992 in Vancouver.
It’s the Crown’s theory that James slit the throat of Wakabayashi, the daughter of a Taiwanese billionaire, after she learned of the affair.
Sandra MacDonald, a friend of James, told a B.C. Supreme Court jury in Vancouver that she occasionally met James for lunch meetings.
Under questioning from Crown counsel Kerr Clark, MacDonald said James quite often brought up the subject of her troubled marriage to Derek James.
“It was very stormy,” MacDonald said of the marriage. “He had been having affairs and she was very hurt and very angry about his behaviour.”
Asked by Clark whether there were any particular people mentioned by James, MacDonald said that the accused mentioned a woman named Gladys.
“She said Gladys was a friend of hers as well as Derek and that he had had an affair with her,” said the Crown witness during testimony Thursday.
“What was her demeanor,” asked Clark.
“She was very angry and upset,” replied MacDonald.
The witness said that at some point she received a visit from detectives who said they were investigating a murder and wanted to know if she knew James.
A short time later, maybe a week, she received a phone call from James asking whether she’d been contacted by homicide detectives, said MacDonald.
James told her that she was involved as a murder suspect and that the police had been “making her life hell” and had been following her and talking to her family.
“She wanted to give me a heads up that they may be calling,” said MacDonald.
“What was your response,” said Clark.
“I was quite taken aback,” said MacDonald. “I believe we didn’t want to get into too much over the phone, so we did arrange to meet after that call.”
MacDonald said that she subsequently met with James for lunch at the New Westminster quay.
“She told me she’d been accused of the murder of Gladys, her friend, and that Derek had had an affair with her, how awful her life had been, that police had been following her.”
MacDonald said James told her that the only good that came from the police surveillance was that Derek was behaving himself.
MacDonald explained that she met James, a former nurse and flight attendant union executive, through a mutual friend and knew her for several years.
“She was always very well dressed, very well put together whenever I met her.”
Under cross-examination from James’ lawyer, Raj Basra, MacDonald admitted she didn’t recall the date of the lunch where the murder investigation was discussed.
She also conceded that she had not taken any handwritten notes of the meeting.
Basra suggested that James actually told MacDonald that other people had told James that her husband was having an affair with Gladys.
“No, she definitely told me herself he was having an affair with Gladys,” replied MacDonald.
On Wednesday, the Crown played a videotaped confession to the murder made by James following a year-long undercover police operation in 2008. James had been a suspect during the initial police investigation but no charges were laid at that time, court heard.
PROVINCE - OCTOBER 27th 2011 - KEITH FRASER
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Former friend testifies accused murderer Jean Ann James ‘very angry’ with husband
A former friend of Jean Ann James says the accused murderer was “very angry and upset” about her husband’s affair with murder victim Gladys Wakabayashi.
James, 72, has pleaded not guilty to the first-degree murder of Wakabayashi, 41, in June 1992 in Vancouver.
It’s the Crown’s theory that James slit the throat of Wakabayashi, the daughter of a Taiwanese billionaire, after she learned of the affair.
Sandra MacDonald, a friend of James, told a B.C. Supreme Court jury in Vancouver that she occasionally met James for lunch meetings.
Under questioning from Crown counsel Kerr Clark, MacDonald said James quite often brought up the subject of her troubled marriage to Derek James.
“It was very stormy,” MacDonald said of the marriage. “He had been having affairs and she was very hurt and very angry about his behaviour.”
Asked by Clark whether there were any particular people mentioned by James, MacDonald said that the accused mentioned a woman named Gladys.
“She said Gladys was a friend of hers as well as Derek and that he had had an affair with her,” said the Crown witness during testimony Thursday.
“What was her demeanor,” asked Clark.
“She was very angry and upset,” replied MacDonald.
The witness said that at some point she received a visit from detectives who said they were investigating a murder and wanted to know if she knew James.
A short time later, maybe a week, she received a phone call from James asking whether she’d been contacted by homicide detectives, said MacDonald.
James told her that she was involved as a murder suspect and that the police had been “making her life hell” and had been following her and talking to her family.
“She wanted to give me a heads up that they may be calling,” said MacDonald.
“What was your response,” said Clark.
“I was quite taken aback,” said MacDonald. “I believe we didn’t want to get into too much over the phone, so we did arrange to meet after that call.”
MacDonald said that she subsequently met with James for lunch at the New Westminster quay.
“She told me she’d been accused of the murder of Gladys, her friend, and that Derek had had an affair with her, how awful her life had been, that police had been following her.”
MacDonald said James told her that the only good that came from the police surveillance was that Derek was behaving himself.
MacDonald explained that she met James, a former nurse and flight attendant union executive, through a mutual friend and knew her for several years.
“She was always very well dressed, very well put together whenever I met her.”
Under cross-examination from James’ lawyer, Raj Basra, MacDonald admitted she didn’t recall the date of the lunch where the murder investigation was discussed.
She also conceded that she had not taken any handwritten notes of the meeting.
Basra suggested that James actually told MacDonald that other people had told James that her husband was having an affair with Gladys.
“No, she definitely told me herself he was having an affair with Gladys,” replied MacDonald.
On Wednesday, the Crown played a videotaped confession to the murder made by James following a year-long undercover police operation in 2008. James had been a suspect during the initial police investigation but no charges were laid at that time, court heard.
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
My Thoughts on the Latest
Quoted from the article in the Province online article below...
Where are the other women? Still alive?! If they are I bet they have been (a) cursing their luck that they got involved with Derek James, (b) counting their lucky stars Jean had no presents for them and (c) watching their backs for years!
I wonder how Derek has suffered at the hands of his wife, Jean Ann James, because of his unfaithfulness?
BTW - Aseem Dosanjh, lawyer for the accused, is the son of Ujjal Dosanjh.
In matter-of-fact tones, James explains that she did a lot of digging and found out that Wakabayashi was “screwing around” with her husband Derek, an air-traffic controller who had been unfaithful to her numerous times.
Where are the other women? Still alive?! If they are I bet they have been (a) cursing their luck that they got involved with Derek James, (b) counting their lucky stars Jean had no presents for them and (c) watching their backs for years!
I wonder how Derek has suffered at the hands of his wife, Jean Ann James, because of his unfaithfulness?
BTW - Aseem Dosanjh, lawyer for the accused, is the son of Ujjal Dosanjh.
"I've never told anyone else. I've always denied it."
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PROVINCE - OCTOBER 26th 2011 - KEITH FRASER
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Video depicts scorned Jean Ann James describing grisly murder to undercover cop
A jury was shown a video of a Richmond senior calmly describing how she used box cutters to slit the throat of a friend she believed was having an affair with her husband.
The video was taken at the end of a year-long police sting aimed at wringing a confession out of Jean Ann James, 72, who has pleaded not guilty to the first-degree murder of Gladys Wakabayashi, 41.
Wakabayashi, the daughter of a Taiwanese billionaire, was murdered in her home in Vancouver’s posh Shaughnessy neighbourhood in June 1992 but no charges were initially laid in the case.
Nearly 16 years later, police re-opened the file and launched a so-called Mr. Big undercover operation targetting James, who was initially a suspect in the murder.
At the end of the year-long operation, at a hotel room in Quebec in November 2008, James can be heard being wooed by an undercover RCMP officer posing as a crime boss.
The scenario has James being offered a chance to participate in an unspecified crime with a reward of $700,000 to be split among the participants.
But first James, who had earlier assured the undercover cops that she had no conscience and was willing to do anything, is told by the crime boss that she must come clean about the Wakabayashi murder.
In matter-of-fact tones, James explains that she did a lot of digging and found out that Wakabayashi was “screwing around” with her husband Derek, an air-traffic controller who had been unfaithful to her numerous times.
“That was just one time when I wasn’t going to put up with this nonsense anymore. I did something about it,” said James.
“You kill her or you got somebody else to do it?” asks the cop, who cannot be identified due to a publication ban.
“This is strictly between you and I?” says James.
“I’m never going to talk about it,” says the cop.
“I have never told anybody,” says James.
“Well, that’s smart,” says the cop.
“I just went around to her and confronted her about it and she lied to me ... She just started laughing in my face and I just got furious and I did it.”
“What did you do to her?” asks the cop.
“I slit her throat,” said James.
The cop presses James to tell him whether she in fact committed the grisly crime on her own.
“There’s no one else,” replied James. “I’ve never told anyone else. I’ve always denied it.”
Elaborating on the crime, James says she initially tried to get some information about the infidelity from Wakabayashi by cutting her on the legs with a box cutter, before slitting her throat.
“I said (to her) that if you tell the truth, I’ll call the ambulance, which of course I had no intention of doing.”
Asked by the cop what she did with the murder weapon, James says she took it to the other side of town and threw it in a metal dumpster.
“And all the clothes that I had, there was an incinerator at the school and I threw them in there.”
James, who admitted she was “very sneaky,” described how she had parked her car five blocks away from the crime scene and walked to the Selkirk Street home.
She said she used gloves and “kept nothing” from the crime scene when she fled the home.
James reiterated to the undercover cop that she had never told her husband about the crime.
“He was upset, he was just beside himself, but I never said anything.”
Though police had her as a suspect, she said she’d been to the Wakabayashi home several days prior to the murder to visit her friend and that “my fingerprints were all over the house.”
“I didn’t like the police coming around, but I wasn’t shook up about it,” she said.
During his cross-examination of the undercover cop, James’ lawyer Aseem Dosanjh pointed to several inconsistencies in the evidence.
Spectators packed into the small Vancouver courtroom to hear the confession played for the B.C. Supreme Court jury.
PROVINCE - OCTOBER 26th 2011 - KEITH FRASER
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Video depicts scorned Jean Ann James describing grisly murder to undercover cop
A jury was shown a video of a Richmond senior calmly describing how she used box cutters to slit the throat of a friend she believed was having an affair with her husband.
The video was taken at the end of a year-long police sting aimed at wringing a confession out of Jean Ann James, 72, who has pleaded not guilty to the first-degree murder of Gladys Wakabayashi, 41.
Wakabayashi, the daughter of a Taiwanese billionaire, was murdered in her home in Vancouver’s posh Shaughnessy neighbourhood in June 1992 but no charges were initially laid in the case.
Nearly 16 years later, police re-opened the file and launched a so-called Mr. Big undercover operation targetting James, who was initially a suspect in the murder.
At the end of the year-long operation, at a hotel room in Quebec in November 2008, James can be heard being wooed by an undercover RCMP officer posing as a crime boss.
The scenario has James being offered a chance to participate in an unspecified crime with a reward of $700,000 to be split among the participants.
But first James, who had earlier assured the undercover cops that she had no conscience and was willing to do anything, is told by the crime boss that she must come clean about the Wakabayashi murder.
In matter-of-fact tones, James explains that she did a lot of digging and found out that Wakabayashi was “screwing around” with her husband Derek, an air-traffic controller who had been unfaithful to her numerous times.
“That was just one time when I wasn’t going to put up with this nonsense anymore. I did something about it,” said James.
“You kill her or you got somebody else to do it?” asks the cop, who cannot be identified due to a publication ban.
“This is strictly between you and I?” says James.
“I’m never going to talk about it,” says the cop.
“I have never told anybody,” says James.
“Well, that’s smart,” says the cop.
“I just went around to her and confronted her about it and she lied to me ... She just started laughing in my face and I just got furious and I did it.”
“What did you do to her?” asks the cop.
“I slit her throat,” said James.
The cop presses James to tell him whether she in fact committed the grisly crime on her own.
“There’s no one else,” replied James. “I’ve never told anyone else. I’ve always denied it.”
Elaborating on the crime, James says she initially tried to get some information about the infidelity from Wakabayashi by cutting her on the legs with a box cutter, before slitting her throat.
“I said (to her) that if you tell the truth, I’ll call the ambulance, which of course I had no intention of doing.”
Asked by the cop what she did with the murder weapon, James says she took it to the other side of town and threw it in a metal dumpster.
“And all the clothes that I had, there was an incinerator at the school and I threw them in there.”
James, who admitted she was “very sneaky,” described how she had parked her car five blocks away from the crime scene and walked to the Selkirk Street home.
She said she used gloves and “kept nothing” from the crime scene when she fled the home.
James reiterated to the undercover cop that she had never told her husband about the crime.
“He was upset, he was just beside himself, but I never said anything.”
Though police had her as a suspect, she said she’d been to the Wakabayashi home several days prior to the murder to visit her friend and that “my fingerprints were all over the house.”
“I didn’t like the police coming around, but I wasn’t shook up about it,” she said.
During his cross-examination of the undercover cop, James’ lawyer Aseem Dosanjh pointed to several inconsistencies in the evidence.
Spectators packed into the small Vancouver courtroom to hear the confession played for the B.C. Supreme Court jury.
"I was very sneaky about it"
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THE VANCOUVER SUN - BLOG - OCTOBER 26th 2011 - KIM BOLAN
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Accused Killer Jean James Confessed to Undercover Cop
Jean Ann James looks like a typical 72-year-old Richmond senior, small in stature, well-dressed. She has a slight English accent.
But a video-taped “confession” has her admitting that she killed her husband’s mistress in 1992 and would be willing to kill again for a purported criminal organization that had promised her hundreds of thousands in earnings.
The secretly-recorded confession to an undercover cop posing as a crime boss was played in B.C. Supreme Court Wednesday.
She said she used brand-new boxcutters when she slashed Gladys Wakabayashi’s throat on June 24, 1992. She had purchased them for use at a school fund-raising event. She said she tricked Wakabayashi – her friend of five years – by telling her she had brought her a gift.
“I was very sneaky about it. She thought I was giving her a surprise. And we were upstairs. She was sitting in her closet. And I had this necklace. She had her back turned and I had gloves on,” James said.
Her lawyer Aseem Dosanjh suggested several of the things James said in the confession do not match evidence police found at the time. And he suggested she was lured by the undercover operator, who had a big burly ”body guard” who was very menacing when she met with the officer.
THE VANCOUVER SUN - BLOG - OCTOBER 26th 2011 - KIM BOLAN
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Accused Killer Jean James Confessed to Undercover Cop
Jean Ann James looks like a typical 72-year-old Richmond senior, small in stature, well-dressed. She has a slight English accent.
But a video-taped “confession” has her admitting that she killed her husband’s mistress in 1992 and would be willing to kill again for a purported criminal organization that had promised her hundreds of thousands in earnings.
The secretly-recorded confession to an undercover cop posing as a crime boss was played in B.C. Supreme Court Wednesday.
She said she used brand-new boxcutters when she slashed Gladys Wakabayashi’s throat on June 24, 1992. She had purchased them for use at a school fund-raising event. She said she tricked Wakabayashi – her friend of five years – by telling her she had brought her a gift.
“I was very sneaky about it. She thought I was giving her a surprise. And we were upstairs. She was sitting in her closet. And I had this necklace. She had her back turned and I had gloves on,” James said.
Her lawyer Aseem Dosanjh suggested several of the things James said in the confession do not match evidence police found at the time. And he suggested she was lured by the undercover operator, who had a big burly ”body guard” who was very menacing when she met with the officer.
"My mother always told me if you have secrets, keep them to yourself"
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THE VANCOUVER SUN - OCTOBER 26th 2011 - KIM BOLAN
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Accused killer describes murder to undercover officer in video-taped meeting
VANCOUVER -- Accused killer Jean James matter-of-factly described how she used box-cutters to slit the throat of Gladys Wakabayashi in a video-taped meeting with an undercover officer posing as a crime boss.
The tape of the November 27, 2008 meeting in a Montreal hotel room was played for jurors in B.C. Supreme Court Wednesday.
James, who was 69 at the time of the confession, told the officer that she was furious to learn in June 1992 that her friend was having an affair with her husband Derek James, an air traffic controller.
"I wasn't going to put up with this nonsense any more and I did something about it,"James told the officer, whose identity is shielded by a court order.
She said she went to Wakabayashi's westside Vancouver home on June 24, 1992 and confronted her.
"She lied to me. And I caught her because I checked," James said, referring to hotel records of her husband that showed he had called Wakabayashi's home.
"She said 'oh' and she started laughing in my face, and I just got furious and I just did it," James said. "I slit her throat."
The jurors have heard that at the time of the meeting, the Provincial Unsolved Homicide Unit had launched a new probe targeted James as the suspect in the case. They created an elaborate scheme where undercover police agents arranged chance meetings with James, became her confident and eventually got her to do low-level jobs for their purported crime ring.
At the time of the confession, James had indicated an interest in participating in a larger criminal endeavour that was to earn $700,000 for the ring.
The officer asked James how far she was willing to go, asked if she was an A to Z person, with Z meaning she could kill someone.
She said she could do so again if she had to.
"You are an A to Z person," the officer said after hearing the confession.
He asked James if she had left any evidence behind, including a knife.
"I didn't use a knife. I used boxcutters," James said.
The cop expressed surprise that boxcutters would do the job and James said the blade was similar to a surgeon's scalpel. But she agreed they wouldn't go through bone.
She assured the "crime boss" that she was very careful, parking her car some distance from Wakabayashi's house at 6868 Selkirk.
"I walked to her house. I parked my car about five blocks away and I went in and out of the alleyways I didn't go down the main street," she said.
James told the officer that Wakabayashi had split with her husband.
"She divorced her husband so she could screw around with mine," James said.
She told the officer she had a plan to kill Wakabayashi before she went to her house that day, but told her friend she had a new necklace for her.
"She had her back to me," James said, indicating how she pretended to place the necklace around Wakabayashi's throat, but cut it open instead.
"I had gloves on so there was no DNA, she said.
James also cut Wakabayashi's legs, she said, to illicit more information from her about the affair.
"I said if you tell me the truth, I'll call an ambulance which of course I had no intention of doing," James told the officer.
She said she knew Wakabayashi would bleed out "because I cut her along the jugular vein."
"I just left her. I never touched her," she said, describing the area in the victim's master suite where the body was lying.
Before the murder, the two friends had coffee, so on her way out James "washed the cups and wiped everything."
She told the officer that she had never told anyone what she had done, including her own husband.
"I never tell my husband my business," James said. "My mother always told me if you have secrets, keep them to yourself."
James' lawyer Aseem Dosanjh suggested to the officer that some of the details provided with James did not match up exactly with the circumstances of the crime.
On the tape she said she left Wakabayashi's bedroom without going anywhere else within it, yet there was a bloody front-print from a high heel found in the bathroom, Dosanjh noted.
And while James admitted to slitting Wakabayashi's throat and cutting her legs, she made no mention of another wound in the lower chest area, Dosanjh said. The officer agreed.
He also agreed that his purported body-guard, another undercover officer, was a large menacing figure.
The trial continues.
THE VANCOUVER SUN - OCTOBER 26th 2011 - KIM BOLAN
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Accused killer describes murder to undercover officer in video-taped meeting
VANCOUVER -- Accused killer Jean James matter-of-factly described how she used box-cutters to slit the throat of Gladys Wakabayashi in a video-taped meeting with an undercover officer posing as a crime boss.
The tape of the November 27, 2008 meeting in a Montreal hotel room was played for jurors in B.C. Supreme Court Wednesday.
James, who was 69 at the time of the confession, told the officer that she was furious to learn in June 1992 that her friend was having an affair with her husband Derek James, an air traffic controller.
"I wasn't going to put up with this nonsense any more and I did something about it,"James told the officer, whose identity is shielded by a court order.
She said she went to Wakabayashi's westside Vancouver home on June 24, 1992 and confronted her.
"She lied to me. And I caught her because I checked," James said, referring to hotel records of her husband that showed he had called Wakabayashi's home.
"She said 'oh' and she started laughing in my face, and I just got furious and I just did it," James said. "I slit her throat."
The jurors have heard that at the time of the meeting, the Provincial Unsolved Homicide Unit had launched a new probe targeted James as the suspect in the case. They created an elaborate scheme where undercover police agents arranged chance meetings with James, became her confident and eventually got her to do low-level jobs for their purported crime ring.
At the time of the confession, James had indicated an interest in participating in a larger criminal endeavour that was to earn $700,000 for the ring.
The officer asked James how far she was willing to go, asked if she was an A to Z person, with Z meaning she could kill someone.
She said she could do so again if she had to.
"You are an A to Z person," the officer said after hearing the confession.
He asked James if she had left any evidence behind, including a knife.
"I didn't use a knife. I used boxcutters," James said.
The cop expressed surprise that boxcutters would do the job and James said the blade was similar to a surgeon's scalpel. But she agreed they wouldn't go through bone.
She assured the "crime boss" that she was very careful, parking her car some distance from Wakabayashi's house at 6868 Selkirk.
"I walked to her house. I parked my car about five blocks away and I went in and out of the alleyways I didn't go down the main street," she said.
James told the officer that Wakabayashi had split with her husband.
"She divorced her husband so she could screw around with mine," James said.
She told the officer she had a plan to kill Wakabayashi before she went to her house that day, but told her friend she had a new necklace for her.
"She had her back to me," James said, indicating how she pretended to place the necklace around Wakabayashi's throat, but cut it open instead.
"I had gloves on so there was no DNA, she said.
James also cut Wakabayashi's legs, she said, to illicit more information from her about the affair.
"I said if you tell me the truth, I'll call an ambulance which of course I had no intention of doing," James told the officer.
She said she knew Wakabayashi would bleed out "because I cut her along the jugular vein."
"I just left her. I never touched her," she said, describing the area in the victim's master suite where the body was lying.
Before the murder, the two friends had coffee, so on her way out James "washed the cups and wiped everything."
She told the officer that she had never told anyone what she had done, including her own husband.
"I never tell my husband my business," James said. "My mother always told me if you have secrets, keep them to yourself."
James' lawyer Aseem Dosanjh suggested to the officer that some of the details provided with James did not match up exactly with the circumstances of the crime.
On the tape she said she left Wakabayashi's bedroom without going anywhere else within it, yet there was a bloody front-print from a high heel found in the bathroom, Dosanjh noted.
And while James admitted to slitting Wakabayashi's throat and cutting her legs, she made no mention of another wound in the lower chest area, Dosanjh said. The officer agreed.
He also agreed that his purported body-guard, another undercover officer, was a large menacing figure.
The trial continues.
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
FYI : Comments
I noticed today that the comments settings were so that you had to identify yourself. Now you do not, you can comment anonymously, if you so wish. I did notice that there are a LOT of you stopping in here to read - don't worry I don't see your address or name or something ridiculous like that - so feel free to participate.
My Thoughts on the Latest
Alright, I can't help but make some comments on the latest Province article by Keith Fraser. Not because I need to, but why would you come to this blog to read all the information out there thus far when you can roam around the internet and find it yourself. Ease, I suppose. But how about a little of my blah-blah-blah along the way.
Quoted from the article:
Um, hello, "East Indian woman" if you are out there I hope that when Jean Ann James is "very angry" with you and thinks you are "probably dead", you aren't! You okay? Will you be testifying? Hmmmm.
I wonder how angry she was at Gladys Wakabayashi if she thought Gladys was having an affair with her husband?
I wonder how angry she was/is at her husband, Derek James, for thinking he was having an affair with Gladys Wakabayashi?!?
If you were Jean Ann James you sure-as-shit would not let your husband divorce you. I'm right in thinking that spouses can not be made to testify against each other, right?
Quoted from the article:
James told an undercover operator that a friend of hers, an East Indian woman, had told police she was the killer, court heard.
“She became a suspect because the East Indian woman had alerted police."
...
Referring to her notes, the undercover cop said that in describing the situation, James was “very angry” with the East Indian woman.
“I told her I hoped the East Indian woman got what she deserved. She said she didn’t know, she hadn’t seen her in a long time but that she thought that she was probably dead.
Um, hello, "East Indian woman" if you are out there I hope that when Jean Ann James is "very angry" with you and thinks you are "probably dead", you aren't! You okay? Will you be testifying? Hmmmm.
I wonder how angry she was at Gladys Wakabayashi if she thought Gladys was having an affair with her husband?
I wonder how angry she was/is at her husband, Derek James, for thinking he was having an affair with Gladys Wakabayashi?!?
If you were Jean Ann James you sure-as-shit would not let your husband divorce you. I'm right in thinking that spouses can not be made to testify against each other, right?
UNDERCOVER
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PROVINCE - OCTOBER 24th 2011 - KEITH FRASER
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Accused murderer told undercover cop she was a suspect, but denied involvement, court hears
In the midst of an undercover police operation, accused killer Jean Ann James admitted she was a suspect in the murder of her friend, but denied any involvement, a jury heard on Monday.
James, 72, has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder in the June 1992 slaying of Gladys Wakabayashi, 41.
The Crown’s theory is that James slit her friend’s throat after she learned that she was having an affair with her husband Derek.
The jury has been told that at the end of the lengthy undercover operation launched in 2008, James confessed to the grisly slaying in the Shaughnessy home of Wakabayashi, the daughter of a Taiwanese billionaire.
But before the confession, in the middle of the year-long operation, James told an undercover operator that a friend of hers, an East Indian woman, had told police she was the killer, court heard.
“She became a suspect because the East Indian woman had alerted police,” said the undercover operator who cannot be identified because of a publication ban.
“She denied any involvement. She said the only reason she was a suspect at that time was because she was friends with the deceased.”
Referring to her notes, the undercover cop said that in describing the situation, James was “very angry” with the East Indian woman.
“I told her I hoped the East Indian woman got what she deserved. She said she didn’t know, she hadn’t seen her in a long time but that she thought that she was probably dead.
“She assured me that the issue was dead because it had happened 15 years ago . . . She believed the person responsible must have been caught.”
The undercover cop described an elaborate operation targeting James that involved dozens of high-society scenarios aimed at drawing the accused into what appeared to be criminal activity.
The first scenario had the cop posing as the very wealthy, nouveau-riche wife of a property developer.
She said she met James after both women were contest winners and were picked up in a limousine and taken to Spa Utopia in downtown Vancouver, where they spent the day getting their nails, feet and facials done as well as a massage.
James was “very interested” in wine and invited her to a wine-tasting at the Rosedale restaurant on Robson the following week, she said.
“She was very friendly to me, as was her husband, Derek.”
The cop said she later phoned James and asked her to go shopping and show her around.
James told her that her son was an aspiring actor and had met actors Billy Bob Thornton and Nicole Kidman, she said.
The scenarios took the two women to the Gourmet Warehouse to buy special sauces and ingredients and to Granville Island to shop and look for special pastries.
The undercover cop said that in March 2008, a scenario took the two women to the Sheraton Wall Centre in Vancouver, where the undercover cop parked illegally and then took a package into the hotel, she said.
The cop asked James to shoo away anybody who came near the car while she was in the hotel, she said.
Later scenarios had the cop displaying three six-inch bands of $20 bills in front of James, said the officer.
“She seemed excited. It was exciting to see that amount of money.”
Following a lunch at the Fish House restaurant in Stanley Park, James was instructed to watch the cop meet another person, for which James was paid $300, she said.
One scenario took them to the exclusive Shaughnessy Golf Club for a meeting of James’ wine club, with 60 to 70 wealthy people in attendance.
“I met lots of people and she was very proud to introduce us around,” said the cop.
At one point James said she had hailed from royalty and deserved to have a nice lifestyle.
“She wanted to live in the south of France and also to have a house in Shaughnessy.”
The criminal scenarios included the apparent trafficking in stolen credit cards and the laundering of money at several casinos, including the River Rock Casino in Richmond, said the undercover cop.
The trial continues.
PROVINCE - OCTOBER 24th 2011 - KEITH FRASER
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Accused murderer told undercover cop she was a suspect, but denied involvement, court hears
In the midst of an undercover police operation, accused killer Jean Ann James admitted she was a suspect in the murder of her friend, but denied any involvement, a jury heard on Monday.
James, 72, has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder in the June 1992 slaying of Gladys Wakabayashi, 41.
The Crown’s theory is that James slit her friend’s throat after she learned that she was having an affair with her husband Derek.
The jury has been told that at the end of the lengthy undercover operation launched in 2008, James confessed to the grisly slaying in the Shaughnessy home of Wakabayashi, the daughter of a Taiwanese billionaire.
But before the confession, in the middle of the year-long operation, James told an undercover operator that a friend of hers, an East Indian woman, had told police she was the killer, court heard.
“She became a suspect because the East Indian woman had alerted police,” said the undercover operator who cannot be identified because of a publication ban.
“She denied any involvement. She said the only reason she was a suspect at that time was because she was friends with the deceased.”
Referring to her notes, the undercover cop said that in describing the situation, James was “very angry” with the East Indian woman.
“I told her I hoped the East Indian woman got what she deserved. She said she didn’t know, she hadn’t seen her in a long time but that she thought that she was probably dead.
“She assured me that the issue was dead because it had happened 15 years ago . . . She believed the person responsible must have been caught.”
The undercover cop described an elaborate operation targeting James that involved dozens of high-society scenarios aimed at drawing the accused into what appeared to be criminal activity.
The first scenario had the cop posing as the very wealthy, nouveau-riche wife of a property developer.
She said she met James after both women were contest winners and were picked up in a limousine and taken to Spa Utopia in downtown Vancouver, where they spent the day getting their nails, feet and facials done as well as a massage.
James was “very interested” in wine and invited her to a wine-tasting at the Rosedale restaurant on Robson the following week, she said.
“She was very friendly to me, as was her husband, Derek.”
The cop said she later phoned James and asked her to go shopping and show her around.
James told her that her son was an aspiring actor and had met actors Billy Bob Thornton and Nicole Kidman, she said.
The scenarios took the two women to the Gourmet Warehouse to buy special sauces and ingredients and to Granville Island to shop and look for special pastries.
The undercover cop said that in March 2008, a scenario took the two women to the Sheraton Wall Centre in Vancouver, where the undercover cop parked illegally and then took a package into the hotel, she said.
The cop asked James to shoo away anybody who came near the car while she was in the hotel, she said.
Later scenarios had the cop displaying three six-inch bands of $20 bills in front of James, said the officer.
“She seemed excited. It was exciting to see that amount of money.”
Following a lunch at the Fish House restaurant in Stanley Park, James was instructed to watch the cop meet another person, for which James was paid $300, she said.
One scenario took them to the exclusive Shaughnessy Golf Club for a meeting of James’ wine club, with 60 to 70 wealthy people in attendance.
“I met lots of people and she was very proud to introduce us around,” said the cop.
At one point James said she had hailed from royalty and deserved to have a nice lifestyle.
“She wanted to live in the south of France and also to have a house in Shaughnessy.”
The criminal scenarios included the apparent trafficking in stolen credit cards and the laundering of money at several casinos, including the River Rock Casino in Richmond, said the undercover cop.
The trial continues.
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
One Year Ago : Pretrial. Today : Trial.
I posted a blog post one year ago, October 18th 2010, also a Tuesday. No longer is this case in the preliminary stages, now they are in FULL TILT TRIAL!
I know a few people have been waiting YEARS for this trial to be happening. I bet there are some people who thought this trial might not happen.
Here are some of the stories run last week by the Vancouver Sun and The Province.
Jean Ann James bows her head as she leaves BC Supreme Court in Vancouver. James is on trial for the murder of Gladys Wakabayashi, whose throat was slashed in 1992
Photograph by: Ric Ernst, PNG
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THE VANCOUVER SUN - OCTOBER 12th 2011 - KIM BOLAN
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Richmond Senior “Confessed” to 1992 Murder: Crown
VANCOUVER - A 72-year-old Richmond woman confessed to slashing the throat of her husband’s wealthy mistress two decades ago after police launched an undercover sting into the unsolved murder in 2007, B.C. Supreme Court heard Wednesday.
Jean Ann James is charged with first-degree murder in the Shaughnessy slaying of her former friend Gladys Wakabayashi, the daughter of a Taiwanese billionaire, on June 24, 1992.
The charge was finally laid three years ago, after undercover officers posed as members of a criminal organization that recruited James, Crown prosecutor Jennifer Horneland told jurors in her opening statement.
Police arranged a chance encounter between James and an undercover operator and the two women “became friends and bonded,” Horneland explained.
Soon, the operator asked James for help doing “various tasks for the criminal organization such as delivering packages, moving vehicles and meeting with buyers of counterfeit products,” the jury heard.
Eventually James was taken to Montreal for a meeting to discuss her potential role with the purported crime boss, and it was during this meeting that James laid out details of the Wakabayashi murder, Horneland said.
“She killed Gladys Wakabayashi because she had done a little digging and found that Gladys Wakabayashi had been having an affair with her husband. A few days after learning this, she told Gladys Wakabayashi that she had a gift for her and would like to bring it to her home,” Horneland said.
She said that James carefully planned the murder and laid out those plans in the video-taped confession to undercover police in November 2008. The tape will be played later in the trial.
“You will hear from Jean James that she was sneaky about it and that she parked her car five blocks away from Gladys Wakabayashi’s home, that she walked down the lanes rather than on the sidewalks to get to the residence. She put a necklace, which was the gift, around Mrs. Wakabayashi’s neck and slit her throat with a boxcutter.”
James also stabbed Wakabayashi’s legs and claimed she would call her friend an ambulance if she gave “a truthful account of the affair,” Horneland said.
“You will hear Jean James say that she had no intention of calling an ambulance and that she slashed Gladys Wakabayashi on her legs because she wanted to get information from her and particularly she wanted to know how long the affair had been going on,” the prosecutor told jurors.
The videotape shows James describing how she wore gloves and destroyed evidence, disposing of the murder weapon in a metal dumpster on the other side of town, Horneland said.
James’s lawyer Raj Basra urged jurors not to jump to conclusions and to examine all the evidence presented during the trial carefully. And, he said, the central issue in the case is the reliability of the video-taped confession.
“Be critical about what you hear and ultimately keep an open mind in this case,” Basra said in his brief opening.
Horneland said the Crown will call 33 witnesses, including friends of James, who are expected to testify that she had learned of her husband Derek James’s affair with Wakabayashi. And Wakabayashi’s former husband, Shinji, and daughter, Elisa, who was just 12 at the time, are expected to be called this week.
One friend is expected to detail a lunch she had with James, in which the accused killer said “Derek was having an affair with a very, very wealthy oriental woman and that this woman Derek was having an affair with was supposed to be her friend,” Horneland said.
Several police witnesses will be called, Justice Catherine Bruce heard, including officers from the original Vancouver Police investigation as well as the undercover sting 16 years later, and a blood-spatter expert.
James sat in the prisoner’s box, emotionless, as Horneland spoke.
Wakabayashi, 41, was separated from her husband when she was killed. The court heard that she loved playing the piano and missed a lesson on the morning she was killed.
She shared her home at 6868 Selkirk St. with her young daughter, whom she failed to pick up from school that day, Horneland said.
Elisa Wakabayashi called her dad to come and get her instead. He discovered Wakabayashi fatally wounded in the dressing area between her bedroom and ensuite, Horneland said.
Wakabayashi was described in court as a soft-spoken woman. Jurors heard that in addition to her affair with Derek James, an air-traffic controller, she had a two-year relationship with a Chilliwack music teacher named Joseph Bayer.
The trial is expected to last six weeks.
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THE PROVINCE - OCTOBER 12th 2011 - KEITH FRASER
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Woman confessed to killing husband's mistress with box cutters, court told
A Richmond woman confessed to undercover police that she used box cutters to slash the throat of a friend who she believed was having an affair with her husband, a jury heard Wednesday.
Jean Ann James was 69 years old when she was arrested in December 2008 and charged with first-degree murder in the June 1992 slaying of Gladys Wakabayashi, 41, the daughter of a Taiwanese billionaire.
Prosecutor Jennifer Horneland told the jury that police did not have sufficient evidence to lay charges following their initial investigation.
The case lay cold until 2007 when the file was reviewed by the unsolved-homicide investigation unit.
New witnesses were interviewed, old witnesses were re-interviewed and police launched a year-long undercover operation against James.
At a meeting in Montreal with police posing as members of a criminal organization, James confessed to the murder.
“She killed Gladys Wakabayashi because she had done a little digging and found that Gladys Wakabayashi had been having an affair with her husband,” said Horneland.
“A few days after learning this, she told Gladys Wakabayashi that she had a gift for her and would like to bring it to her home.”
Horneland said James was “sneaky” and parked her car five blocks away from the victim’s home on Selkirk Street in Vancouver’s posh Shaughnessy neighbourhood, then walked down the lanes rather than on the sidewalks to get to the residence.
“She put a necklace, which was the gift, around Mrs. Wakabayashi’s neck and slit her throat with a boxcutter,” she said.
“You will hear Jean James explain that Gladys Wakabayashi struggled, so she told Gladys that she would call an ambulance if she would give a truthful account of the affair.”
The prosecutor said the accused had no intention of calling an ambulance and slashed the victim on the legs because she wanted to get information from her, including as to how long the affair had lasted.
Horneland said the evidence will show that Wakabayashi had several incise wounds to her arms and her legs, many deep incise wounds to her chest and a massive encircling wound to her neck.
The autopsy revealed that the encircling neck wound was the cause of death, she said.
A blood-spatter expert is expected to testify that Wakabayashi died while in a seating or leaning position.
The Crown counsel said that 33 witnesses will be called including the Wakabayashi’s former husband, her daughter and her brother, as well as friends and acquaintances of the victim.
Court will hear that the slaying was discovered after the victim had failed to pick up her then-12-year-old daughter from school, said Horneland.
The daughter phoned her father, who picked her up and returned to the home, where the victim’s body was discovered in the master bedroom, she said.
Raj Basra, a lawyer for James, cautioned the jury to remember the presumption of innocence for an accused.
He said the central issue at trial will be the reliability of the confession.
“Be critical about what you hear and ultimately keep an open mind in this case.”
The first witness, Edward Parker, 81, the victim’s former piano teacher, told the jury he felt “very apprehensive” when she failed to show for her regular one-hour long lesson.
He said he phoned the Wakabayashi residence but could only get a recorded message.
“I thought that was strange. She was very precise about appointments ... I felt there was something very serious happening.”
Parker said it wasn’t until the next day that he was told the “tragic” news.
He described his former pupil as “a very gentle, soft-spoken” woman who didn’t initiate conversations.
“She was a little bit shy. We didn’t go for coffee at all. She had her lesson. It was an hour long and then she’d be on her way.”
The trial continues.
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THE PROVINCE - OCTOBER 13th 2011 - KEITH FRASER
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Wife confessed to murder: Crown
Jury hears opening statement in case of Gladys Wakabayashi's alleged slaying
A Richmond woman confessed to undercover police that she used box cutters to slash the throat of a friend who she believed was having an affair with her husband, a jury heard Wednesday.
Jean Ann James was 69 years old when she was arrested in December 2008 and charged with first-degree murder in the June 1992 slaying of Gladys Wakabayashi, 41, the daughter of a Taiwanese billionaire.
Prosecutor Jennifer Horneland told the jury that police didn't have sufficient evidence to lay charges following their initial investigation.
The case lay cold until 2007, when the file was reviewed by the unsolved-homicide investigation unit.
New witnesses were interviewed, old witnesses were re-interviewed and police launched a yearlong undercover operation against James, who was married to Derek James, an air traffic controller.
At a meeting in Montreal, with police posing as members of a criminal organization, James confessed to the murder.
"You will hear Jean James explain that she killed Gladys Wakabayashi because she had done a little digging and found that Gladys Wakabayashi had been having an affair with her husband," said Horneland.
"A few days after learning this, she told Gladys Wakabayashi that she had a gift for her and would like to bring it to her home."
Horneland said James was "sneaky" and parked her car five blocks away from the victim's home on Selkirk Street in Vancouver's posh Shaughnessy neighbourhood, then walked down the lanes rather than on the sidewalks to get to the residence.
"She put a necklace, which was the gift, around Mrs. Wakabayashi's neck and slit her throat with a box cutter," she said.
"You will hear Jean James explain that Gladys Wakabayashi struggled, so she told Gladys that she would call an ambulance if she would give a truthful account of the affair."
The prosecutor said the accused had no intention of calling an ambulance and slashed the victim on the legs because she wanted to get information from her, including as to how long the affair had lasted. Horneland said the evidence will show that Wakabayashi had several incised wounds to her arms and her legs, many deep-incised wounds to her chest and a massive encircling wound to her neck.
The autopsy revealed that the encircling neck wound was the cause of death, she said.
A blood-spatter expert is expected to testify that Wakabayashi died while in a seating or leaning position, between the open passage between the ensuite bathroom and the bedroom.
Court will hear that the slaying was discovered after the victim failed to pick up her then-12-year-old daughter from school, said Horneland.
The daughter phoned her father, who picked her up and returned to the home, where the victim's body was discovered.
Raj Basra, a lawyer for James, cautioned the jury to remember the presumption of innocence for an accused.
He said the central issue at trial will be the reliability of the confession.
"Be critical about what you hear and ultimately keep an open mind in this case," he said.
James has pleaded not guilty to the murder charge. The well-dressed elderly woman sat quietly in the prisoner's dock during the first day of the trial.
Wakabayashi's husband, Shinji Wakabayashi, and her daughter, Elisa, are expected to testify today.
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THE PROVINCE - OCTOBER 14th 2011 - KEITH FRASER
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Accused murderer was found in victim’s bedroom days before attack, court told
Shinji Wakabayashi leaves Supreme Court after testifying at the murder trial of Jean Ann James. James is accused in the murder of Wakabayashi’s former wife, Gladys.
Photograph by: Gerry Kahrmann, The Province
The husband of murder victim Gladys Wakabayashi testified Thursday that just days after the slaying, accused killer Jean James was seeking details of the homicide.
Shinji Wakabayashi told a B.C. Supreme Court jury that James had called him two days after the June 24, 1992, slaying, while he was staying at the Pan Pacific Hotel in Vancouver.
“She told me, ‘I’ve been looking for you,’ and asked me what had happened,” the Japan Airlines manager said. “I told her I can’t say anything just yet ... After I explained that to her, she said, ‘Yes, I understand,’ and I hung up.”
Two days later, he met James while the two were visiting the victim’s mother, he said.
“She asked me how (Gladys) was killed. I told her I can’t really explain much but I told her I saw her laying on her back, face upward and there was a cut on her neck.”
James has pleaded not guilty to one count of first-degree murder of her friend, Gladys Wakabayashi, the daughter of a Taiwanese billionaire.
The Crown’s theory is that James slit her friend’s throat after learning that Gladys was having an affair with her husband, Derek James.
Prosecutors say that following a police sting, James confessed to the murder.
Shinji Wakabayashi, who was separated from his wife at the time of the slaying, testified that on the day of the murder, he picked up his daughter Elisa after her mom had failed to pick her up from school.
The father and daughter went to Gladys’ home on Selkirk Street in the posh Shaughnessy neighbourhood.
Wakabayashi said the back door was unlocked, an unusual circumstance, and there was no answer when he called out Gladys’ name.
He went upstairs and went into the master bedroom where he found Gladys laying on her back.
“I saw a big cut on her leg. I tried to push her left arm. I felt something was not right.”
Wakabayashi said he tried to call 911 but was not able to get through and went next door to his brother-in-law, where police were called.
He testified that prior to the murder, his daughter and a son of James attended the same school and the families frequently socialized with one another.
The Crown played a number of recorded but undated messages from Gladys Wakabayashi’s telephone message machine, identified by Wakabayashi as being from both Jean James and Derek James.
Several of the messages from Derek James expressed intimacy.
“Hi love, just me,” says one message. “Saturday night. I was just calling. Thank you, bye.”
Another from Derek James said: “Hi darling, it’s me. I’ll call you back sometime. Don’t call me. I’ll call you.”
Under cross-examination by James’ lawyer, Raj Basra, Wakabayashi said he didn’t explain in detail to James what he saw when he found Gladys’ body.
Elisa Wakabayashi, who was 12 years old at the time of the slaying, testified earlier that she found Jean Ann James in her mother’s bedroom two days before the slaying.
She said that she’d heard the phone ringing in the Shaughnessy home and went into the bedroom only to find James.
The accused killer wanted to know if it was her husband, Derek James, who was calling, she told a BC Supreme Court jury Thursday.
The phone stopped ringing and Wakabayashi went back to her room, she said.
Under cross-examination, Wakabayashi was asked if she noticed anything unusual about James.
She replied that other than finding James in the bedroom, “I didn’t find her behaviour odd, or unusual.”
Elisa said her father was “quite hysterical” when he discovered the body of her mother in the home.
“He was very, very upset and difficult to understand, but he told me what had happened.”
Asked by Crown counsel whether there was any animosity between her parents, she replied: “No, they didn’t fight a lot. They just had cultural differences that couldn’t be resolved.”
She explained that her father was Japanese and her mother Taiwanese.
Court heard that no charges were laid after the initial police investigation.
The case lay cold until 2007 when the file was reviewed by police and the undercover operation was launched, court heard.
The trial is expected to continue Friday and run for six weeks.
I know a few people have been waiting YEARS for this trial to be happening. I bet there are some people who thought this trial might not happen.
Here are some of the stories run last week by the Vancouver Sun and The Province.
Jean Ann James bows her head as she leaves BC Supreme Court in Vancouver. James is on trial for the murder of Gladys Wakabayashi, whose throat was slashed in 1992
Photograph by: Ric Ernst, PNG
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THE VANCOUVER SUN - OCTOBER 12th 2011 - KIM BOLAN
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Richmond Senior “Confessed” to 1992 Murder: Crown
VANCOUVER - A 72-year-old Richmond woman confessed to slashing the throat of her husband’s wealthy mistress two decades ago after police launched an undercover sting into the unsolved murder in 2007, B.C. Supreme Court heard Wednesday.
Jean Ann James is charged with first-degree murder in the Shaughnessy slaying of her former friend Gladys Wakabayashi, the daughter of a Taiwanese billionaire, on June 24, 1992.
The charge was finally laid three years ago, after undercover officers posed as members of a criminal organization that recruited James, Crown prosecutor Jennifer Horneland told jurors in her opening statement.
Police arranged a chance encounter between James and an undercover operator and the two women “became friends and bonded,” Horneland explained.
Soon, the operator asked James for help doing “various tasks for the criminal organization such as delivering packages, moving vehicles and meeting with buyers of counterfeit products,” the jury heard.
Eventually James was taken to Montreal for a meeting to discuss her potential role with the purported crime boss, and it was during this meeting that James laid out details of the Wakabayashi murder, Horneland said.
“She killed Gladys Wakabayashi because she had done a little digging and found that Gladys Wakabayashi had been having an affair with her husband. A few days after learning this, she told Gladys Wakabayashi that she had a gift for her and would like to bring it to her home,” Horneland said.
She said that James carefully planned the murder and laid out those plans in the video-taped confession to undercover police in November 2008. The tape will be played later in the trial.
“You will hear from Jean James that she was sneaky about it and that she parked her car five blocks away from Gladys Wakabayashi’s home, that she walked down the lanes rather than on the sidewalks to get to the residence. She put a necklace, which was the gift, around Mrs. Wakabayashi’s neck and slit her throat with a boxcutter.”
James also stabbed Wakabayashi’s legs and claimed she would call her friend an ambulance if she gave “a truthful account of the affair,” Horneland said.
“You will hear Jean James say that she had no intention of calling an ambulance and that she slashed Gladys Wakabayashi on her legs because she wanted to get information from her and particularly she wanted to know how long the affair had been going on,” the prosecutor told jurors.
The videotape shows James describing how she wore gloves and destroyed evidence, disposing of the murder weapon in a metal dumpster on the other side of town, Horneland said.
James’s lawyer Raj Basra urged jurors not to jump to conclusions and to examine all the evidence presented during the trial carefully. And, he said, the central issue in the case is the reliability of the video-taped confession.
“Be critical about what you hear and ultimately keep an open mind in this case,” Basra said in his brief opening.
Horneland said the Crown will call 33 witnesses, including friends of James, who are expected to testify that she had learned of her husband Derek James’s affair with Wakabayashi. And Wakabayashi’s former husband, Shinji, and daughter, Elisa, who was just 12 at the time, are expected to be called this week.
One friend is expected to detail a lunch she had with James, in which the accused killer said “Derek was having an affair with a very, very wealthy oriental woman and that this woman Derek was having an affair with was supposed to be her friend,” Horneland said.
Several police witnesses will be called, Justice Catherine Bruce heard, including officers from the original Vancouver Police investigation as well as the undercover sting 16 years later, and a blood-spatter expert.
James sat in the prisoner’s box, emotionless, as Horneland spoke.
Wakabayashi, 41, was separated from her husband when she was killed. The court heard that she loved playing the piano and missed a lesson on the morning she was killed.
She shared her home at 6868 Selkirk St. with her young daughter, whom she failed to pick up from school that day, Horneland said.
Elisa Wakabayashi called her dad to come and get her instead. He discovered Wakabayashi fatally wounded in the dressing area between her bedroom and ensuite, Horneland said.
Wakabayashi was described in court as a soft-spoken woman. Jurors heard that in addition to her affair with Derek James, an air-traffic controller, she had a two-year relationship with a Chilliwack music teacher named Joseph Bayer.
The trial is expected to last six weeks.
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THE PROVINCE - OCTOBER 12th 2011 - KEITH FRASER
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Woman confessed to killing husband's mistress with box cutters, court told
A Richmond woman confessed to undercover police that she used box cutters to slash the throat of a friend who she believed was having an affair with her husband, a jury heard Wednesday.
Jean Ann James was 69 years old when she was arrested in December 2008 and charged with first-degree murder in the June 1992 slaying of Gladys Wakabayashi, 41, the daughter of a Taiwanese billionaire.
Prosecutor Jennifer Horneland told the jury that police did not have sufficient evidence to lay charges following their initial investigation.
The case lay cold until 2007 when the file was reviewed by the unsolved-homicide investigation unit.
New witnesses were interviewed, old witnesses were re-interviewed and police launched a year-long undercover operation against James.
At a meeting in Montreal with police posing as members of a criminal organization, James confessed to the murder.
“She killed Gladys Wakabayashi because she had done a little digging and found that Gladys Wakabayashi had been having an affair with her husband,” said Horneland.
“A few days after learning this, she told Gladys Wakabayashi that she had a gift for her and would like to bring it to her home.”
Horneland said James was “sneaky” and parked her car five blocks away from the victim’s home on Selkirk Street in Vancouver’s posh Shaughnessy neighbourhood, then walked down the lanes rather than on the sidewalks to get to the residence.
“She put a necklace, which was the gift, around Mrs. Wakabayashi’s neck and slit her throat with a boxcutter,” she said.
“You will hear Jean James explain that Gladys Wakabayashi struggled, so she told Gladys that she would call an ambulance if she would give a truthful account of the affair.”
The prosecutor said the accused had no intention of calling an ambulance and slashed the victim on the legs because she wanted to get information from her, including as to how long the affair had lasted.
Horneland said the evidence will show that Wakabayashi had several incise wounds to her arms and her legs, many deep incise wounds to her chest and a massive encircling wound to her neck.
The autopsy revealed that the encircling neck wound was the cause of death, she said.
A blood-spatter expert is expected to testify that Wakabayashi died while in a seating or leaning position.
The Crown counsel said that 33 witnesses will be called including the Wakabayashi’s former husband, her daughter and her brother, as well as friends and acquaintances of the victim.
Court will hear that the slaying was discovered after the victim had failed to pick up her then-12-year-old daughter from school, said Horneland.
The daughter phoned her father, who picked her up and returned to the home, where the victim’s body was discovered in the master bedroom, she said.
Raj Basra, a lawyer for James, cautioned the jury to remember the presumption of innocence for an accused.
He said the central issue at trial will be the reliability of the confession.
“Be critical about what you hear and ultimately keep an open mind in this case.”
The first witness, Edward Parker, 81, the victim’s former piano teacher, told the jury he felt “very apprehensive” when she failed to show for her regular one-hour long lesson.
He said he phoned the Wakabayashi residence but could only get a recorded message.
“I thought that was strange. She was very precise about appointments ... I felt there was something very serious happening.”
Parker said it wasn’t until the next day that he was told the “tragic” news.
He described his former pupil as “a very gentle, soft-spoken” woman who didn’t initiate conversations.
“She was a little bit shy. We didn’t go for coffee at all. She had her lesson. It was an hour long and then she’d be on her way.”
The trial continues.
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THE PROVINCE - OCTOBER 13th 2011 - KEITH FRASER
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Wife confessed to murder: Crown
Jury hears opening statement in case of Gladys Wakabayashi's alleged slaying
Jean Ann James was 69 years old when she was arrested in December 2008 and charged with first-degree murder in the June 1992 slaying of Gladys Wakabayashi, 41, the daughter of a Taiwanese billionaire.
Prosecutor Jennifer Horneland told the jury that police didn't have sufficient evidence to lay charges following their initial investigation.
The case lay cold until 2007, when the file was reviewed by the unsolved-homicide investigation unit.
New witnesses were interviewed, old witnesses were re-interviewed and police launched a yearlong undercover operation against James, who was married to Derek James, an air traffic controller.
At a meeting in Montreal, with police posing as members of a criminal organization, James confessed to the murder.
"You will hear Jean James explain that she killed Gladys Wakabayashi because she had done a little digging and found that Gladys Wakabayashi had been having an affair with her husband," said Horneland.
"A few days after learning this, she told Gladys Wakabayashi that she had a gift for her and would like to bring it to her home."
Horneland said James was "sneaky" and parked her car five blocks away from the victim's home on Selkirk Street in Vancouver's posh Shaughnessy neighbourhood, then walked down the lanes rather than on the sidewalks to get to the residence.
"She put a necklace, which was the gift, around Mrs. Wakabayashi's neck and slit her throat with a box cutter," she said.
"You will hear Jean James explain that Gladys Wakabayashi struggled, so she told Gladys that she would call an ambulance if she would give a truthful account of the affair."
The prosecutor said the accused had no intention of calling an ambulance and slashed the victim on the legs because she wanted to get information from her, including as to how long the affair had lasted. Horneland said the evidence will show that Wakabayashi had several incised wounds to her arms and her legs, many deep-incised wounds to her chest and a massive encircling wound to her neck.
The autopsy revealed that the encircling neck wound was the cause of death, she said.
A blood-spatter expert is expected to testify that Wakabayashi died while in a seating or leaning position, between the open passage between the ensuite bathroom and the bedroom.
Court will hear that the slaying was discovered after the victim failed to pick up her then-12-year-old daughter from school, said Horneland.
The daughter phoned her father, who picked her up and returned to the home, where the victim's body was discovered.
Raj Basra, a lawyer for James, cautioned the jury to remember the presumption of innocence for an accused.
He said the central issue at trial will be the reliability of the confession.
"Be critical about what you hear and ultimately keep an open mind in this case," he said.
James has pleaded not guilty to the murder charge. The well-dressed elderly woman sat quietly in the prisoner's dock during the first day of the trial.
Wakabayashi's husband, Shinji Wakabayashi, and her daughter, Elisa, are expected to testify today.
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THE PROVINCE - OCTOBER 14th 2011 - KEITH FRASER
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Accused murderer was found in victim’s bedroom days before attack, court told
Shinji Wakabayashi leaves Supreme Court after testifying at the murder trial of Jean Ann James. James is accused in the murder of Wakabayashi’s former wife, Gladys.
Photograph by: Gerry Kahrmann, The Province
Shinji Wakabayashi told a B.C. Supreme Court jury that James had called him two days after the June 24, 1992, slaying, while he was staying at the Pan Pacific Hotel in Vancouver.
“She told me, ‘I’ve been looking for you,’ and asked me what had happened,” the Japan Airlines manager said. “I told her I can’t say anything just yet ... After I explained that to her, she said, ‘Yes, I understand,’ and I hung up.”
Two days later, he met James while the two were visiting the victim’s mother, he said.
“She asked me how (Gladys) was killed. I told her I can’t really explain much but I told her I saw her laying on her back, face upward and there was a cut on her neck.”
James has pleaded not guilty to one count of first-degree murder of her friend, Gladys Wakabayashi, the daughter of a Taiwanese billionaire.
The Crown’s theory is that James slit her friend’s throat after learning that Gladys was having an affair with her husband, Derek James.
Prosecutors say that following a police sting, James confessed to the murder.
Shinji Wakabayashi, who was separated from his wife at the time of the slaying, testified that on the day of the murder, he picked up his daughter Elisa after her mom had failed to pick her up from school.
The father and daughter went to Gladys’ home on Selkirk Street in the posh Shaughnessy neighbourhood.
Wakabayashi said the back door was unlocked, an unusual circumstance, and there was no answer when he called out Gladys’ name.
He went upstairs and went into the master bedroom where he found Gladys laying on her back.
“I saw a big cut on her leg. I tried to push her left arm. I felt something was not right.”
Wakabayashi said he tried to call 911 but was not able to get through and went next door to his brother-in-law, where police were called.
He testified that prior to the murder, his daughter and a son of James attended the same school and the families frequently socialized with one another.
The Crown played a number of recorded but undated messages from Gladys Wakabayashi’s telephone message machine, identified by Wakabayashi as being from both Jean James and Derek James.
Several of the messages from Derek James expressed intimacy.
“Hi love, just me,” says one message. “Saturday night. I was just calling. Thank you, bye.”
Another from Derek James said: “Hi darling, it’s me. I’ll call you back sometime. Don’t call me. I’ll call you.”
Under cross-examination by James’ lawyer, Raj Basra, Wakabayashi said he didn’t explain in detail to James what he saw when he found Gladys’ body.
Elisa Wakabayashi, who was 12 years old at the time of the slaying, testified earlier that she found Jean Ann James in her mother’s bedroom two days before the slaying.
She said that she’d heard the phone ringing in the Shaughnessy home and went into the bedroom only to find James.
The accused killer wanted to know if it was her husband, Derek James, who was calling, she told a BC Supreme Court jury Thursday.
The phone stopped ringing and Wakabayashi went back to her room, she said.
Under cross-examination, Wakabayashi was asked if she noticed anything unusual about James.
She replied that other than finding James in the bedroom, “I didn’t find her behaviour odd, or unusual.”
Elisa said her father was “quite hysterical” when he discovered the body of her mother in the home.
“He was very, very upset and difficult to understand, but he told me what had happened.”
Asked by Crown counsel whether there was any animosity between her parents, she replied: “No, they didn’t fight a lot. They just had cultural differences that couldn’t be resolved.”
She explained that her father was Japanese and her mother Taiwanese.
Court heard that no charges were laid after the initial police investigation.
The case lay cold until 2007 when the file was reviewed by police and the undercover operation was launched, court heard.
The trial is expected to continue Friday and run for six weeks.
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