'If anything ever happens to me, look at your dad': Daughter testifies in Greg Fertuck's murder trial
On the stand, in her dad’s murder trial, Lauren Fertuck held back tears while talking about how close she was with her mom.
“We’d talk on the phone every day … we talked about everything,” Lauren told a Saskatoon courtroom, over video.
Lauren’s dad, Greg Fertuck, is charged with first-degree murder in connection to the disappearance of her mom, Sheree Fertuck.
Sheree was last seen on Dec. 7, 2015 leaving the family farm near Kenaston, Sask. to go haul gravel nearby.
The Crown believes Greg shot Sheree at a gravel pit and moved her body to another location. Her remains have never been found.
Greg has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder and causing indignity to human remains.
Lauren testified her mom told her: “If anything ever happens to me, look at your dad” and asked her to look after the dog.
She said the conversation happened about a year-and-a-half before Sheree went missing.
“She was scared my dad would eventually do things to her,” Lauren testified.
Court heard the couple had been separated at the time Sheree went missing. They had three children together: Lucas, Lauren and Lanna.
All the kids, now in their 20s, testified Greg’s drinking fuelled the separation and they’d often fight about finances.
While she never saw the physical violence between her parents, Lauren testified she once saw bruising on her mom’s torso and believed Greg kicked her.
She said she saw Greg kick her brother during an argument.
Lauren told court Greg would call Sheree nasty names and heard him make threats.
“He would get graphic, ‘I’ll gut you like a fish,’” she said.
Earlier in the trial, Lucas testified his dad threatened to shoot his mom “between the eyes.”
Fertuck testified she believed her father was the person responsible from the day her mother went missing.
A couple months after Sheree went missing, Lauren said her dad texted her asking about seeing his grandson, Lauren’s son.
In the text Greg said he loves them more than their mom, court heard.
Lauren told Greg he could only see her son, Greg’s grandson, if took a polygraph test.
In his text reply, Lauren said Greg called her a “brain dead little girl” and called Sheree “a bipolar witch.”
Two days after Sheree went missing, Greg told officers he still loved Sheree and they were even working on reconciling.
The judge-alone trial is in a voir dire, a trial within a trial, to determine the admissibility of evidence.
It’s scheduled to last eight weeks, going into the first week of November.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
B.C. child killer's lawyer walks out of review hearing
The lawyer representing child-killer Allan Schoenborn walked out of his client's annual review hearing Wednesday – abruptly ending proceedings marked by tense exchanges and several outbursts.
Why drivers in Ontario, Quebec and Atlantic Canada will see a gas price spike, and other Canadians won't
Drivers in Eastern Canada face a big increase in gas prices because of various factors, especially the higher cost of the summer blend, industry analysts say.
'A living nightmare': Winnipeg woman sentenced following campaign of harassment against man after online date
A Winnipeg woman was sentenced to house arrest after a single date with a man she met online culminated in her harassing him for years, and spurred false allegations which resulted in the innocent man being arrested three times.
How to avoid the trap of becoming 'house poor'
The journey to home ownership can be exciting, but personal finance columnist Christopher Liew warns about the trappings of becoming 'house poor' -- where an overwhelming portion of your income is devoured by housing costs. Liew offers some practical strategies to maintain better financial health while owning a home.
It's the biggest election in history. Here's why few Indians in Canada will take part
In the Indian general election that gets underway on Friday, almost a billion people are eligible to vote, but a vast majority of the overseas Indian community in Canada won't be casting a ballot.
McDonald's customers left with 'zero value' collection of free hot drink stickers after company ends program
It took years for Vinnie Deluca to collect more than 400 cards worth of free McDonald's McCafe coffee, a collection that now has "zero value" after the company discontinued the program.
Juror dismissed in Trump hush money trial as prosecutors ask for former president to face contempt
Prosecutors in the hush money trial of Donald Trump asked Thursday for the former president to be held in contempt and fined because of seven social media posts that they said violated a judge's gag order barring him from attacking witnesses.
Toxic forever chemicals in drinking water: Is Canada doing enough?
As the United States sets its first national limits on toxic forever chemicals in drinking water, researchers say Canada is lagging when it comes to regulations.
Where did the gold go? Crime expert weighs in on unfolding Pearson airport heist investigation
Almost 7,000 bars of pure gold were stolen from Pearson International Airport exactly one year ago during an elaborate heist, but so far only a tiny fraction of that stolen loot has been found.