Crown seeks dangerous offender assessment in 'macabre' Creston killing
CBC
WARNING: This story contains distressing details.
B.C. Crown prosecutors are seeking a rare dangerous offender assessment for a man who killed and dismembered a woman in Creston, B.C., in 2015.
Nathaniel David Jessup, 35, was convicted of manslaughter and offering an indignity to human remains in B.C. Supreme Court in Kamloops on Friday, following a trial in Cranbrook last summer.
In a written judgment, Justice James Williams described the crime as "macabre, callous and of such a nature that it would shock any sense of decency" but ruled there was not enough evidence to convict Jessup of second-degree murder.
Jessup has a long history of violent crime, including convictions for aggravated assault of a five-year-old boy in Surrey, three counts of assault involving correctional officers, charges of child abduction and an acquittal of second-degree murder charges in the death of a prison cellmate.
In the trial by judge alone, the court heard 59-year-old Katherine McAdam had a friendly relationship with Jessup, then 28 years old and homeless.
The defendant was often seen visiting the victim's basement suite on Cedar Street in Creston, including the morning of Aug. 15, 2015, the last time McAdam was seen.
The woman's remains were located by police 12 days later inside a bike trailer on an acreage in Erickson, an unincorporated community just east of Creston.
Court heard the body was decapitated and dismembered into seven pieces with a hacksaw.
"It was apparent to me that the experienced police officers who dealt with the remains at the scene found the situation extremely distressing," Justice Williams wrote of the horrific discovery.
The condition of the body was such that the coroner could not determine an exact cause of death.
While ruling Jessop killed and dismembered the victim, Justice Williams could not conclude beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant intended to murder McAdam.
"In the result, I find Mr. Jessup guilty of manslaughter in the matter of the death of Katherine McAdam but not guilty of the charge of second-degree murder," he wrote.
According to court records, Jessup has a long history of violence.
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