Hired hitman or failed carjacker: Jurors hear final arguments in Calgary murder trial

The lawyer for the man accused of murdering a woman and trying to kill her husband argued the prosecution's theory of the fatal shooting being a paid hit "doesn't make sense."  

Michael Arnold, 36, is on trial for the first-degree murder of Nakita Baron and the attempted murder of Baron's husband, Talal Fouani, who were shot as they sat in their Bentley outside their home in the southwest community of Evergreen in August 2022. 

Closing arguments took place Wednesday. On Thursday, jurors will receive final instructions on how to apply the law to their deliberations before they are sequestered until a verdict is reached. 

The Crown's theory is that Fouani — who was involved in organized crime money laundering — was the intended target of an execution-style shooting.

But in her closing arguments to the jury on Wednesday, defence lawyer Kathryn Quinlan argued the idea of Arnold being chosen by an organized crime enterprise to carry out a hit "doesn't make sense."

"Why would they choose a meth addict with less than $11 in his bank account?" she asked.

Quinlan suggested Arnold isn't the reliable, trustworthy murderer-for-hire who would have been needed for the hit, pointing out Arnold used a women's bra as a gun holster and brought his dog to the shooting because he was homeless. 

"Does that make sense to you?" she asked. "Because It doesn't make sense to me."

But prosecutor Hyatt Mograbee argued Arnold took several "careful steps" to carry out his "crafty" plan. 

"This was never a carjacking gone wrong," said Mograbee. "Preparations were done in advance."

Security footage from Fouani's neighbours showed Arnold in the nieghbourhood 12 times in the weeks leading up to the shooting. 

Mograbee argued that Arnold had several opportunities to steal Fouani's Bentley.

The most obvious one, said Mograbee, would have been during the 10 minutes Fouani was in his driveway dusting off the vehicle right before Baron got into the vehicle. Instead, Arnold — who was disguised as a construction worker at the time — approached the car as it backed down the driveway, commanding it to stop.

Video of the incident was captured on a neighbour's security camera. It shows that when Fouani put his window down, Arnold shot him in the face. He then shot Baron.