Nathaniel Veltman murder trial: A recap of week 5

WARNING: The details in this article and videos may be disturbing to some viewers

The Nathaniel Veltman murder trial continued for a fifth week and saw the prosecution rest its case after calling a digital forensic expert with the Windsor Police Service and reading to the jury excerpts of Veltman’s manifesto.

Here’s what you missed.

 

MONDAY, OCTOBER 2

The trial of Nathaniel Veltman, 22, did not sit on Monday in recognition of National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.

The jury was told on Sept. 28 they would not be needed until Oct. 3, and that the trial is ahead of schedule.

 

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 3

Sgt. Liyu Guan of the Windsor Police Service took the stand on Tuesday and was asked for an “independent analysis” of the data from electronic devices seized from Veltman’s apartment.

He testified Tuesday about his findings from the seized laptop.

Guan told the jury he found two email addresses and one account username, all using variations of Veltman’s name.

The jury also heard evidence about a document entitled “The White Awakening” found on the laptop, and a “shooting video” that was downloaded and opened eight times on the same laptop.

The apartment of Nathaniel Veltman is seen in this supplied court exhibit from June 2021. (Source: Superior Court of Justice)

 

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 4

On Wednesday, the jury learned about “The White Awakening,” a manifesto written by Veltman about one month before the June 6, 2021 attack.

“I am a white nationalist,” Veltman wrote as he apologized for “rambling.”

“I keep changing my mind about what I want to say,” he wrote.

In the manifesto, Veltman outlined his views on religion, democracy and ideology. CTV News made the decision to not report on offensive content contained in the manifesto.

He said he’s against multiculturalism and “mass immigration,” and believes there is a lot of “Muslim on white” crime, although he had no specific examples other than theories that had been debunked.

The jury also learned Veltman downloaded and viewed two videos of mass shootings and two other manifestos penned by mass shooters in two other countries.

 

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 5

The 14-person jury was released early Thursday morning by the judge after the Crown rested its case.

Shaikh’s final pieces of evidence were 21 short video clips from surveillance cameras inside Veltman’s downtown London apartment building.

On June 5, 2021 – the day before the attack – Veltman returned home in the early morning hours and didn’t leave again until later that afternoon.

The next series of videos jump to the morning of June 6 and depict Veltman return home at approximately 1 a.m. with a reusable grocery shopping bag full of items. Then, between 1:37 a.m. and 1:48 a.m., Veltman was seen throwing multiple cardboard boxes and a large wooden pallet in the building's garbage room.

Shaikh then read a ninth agreed statement of facts about the next videos in the series.

At 2:01 a.m. Veltman was seen “carrying a garbage bag and an item” to the building’s garbage room, and “He then comes out of the garbage room empty-handed and walks back to the stairwell.”

Shaikh amended a previous agreed statement of facts that referenced the speed of Veltman’s truck in the moments before the collision and told the jury, “From four seconds before the impact, the accelerator pedal was depressed at 100 per cent.”

The Crown concluded their case on Thursday, however the jury was not told if the defence will be calling any evidence in support of Veltman.

Over the course of 15 days of evidence, the crown called a total of 19 witnesses, presented nine agreed statements of fact, and catalogued 30 exhibits.

Surveillance video depicts Nathaniel Veltman disposing of garbage at his apartment building on June 6, 2021. (Source: Superior Court of Justice)

 

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 6

Justice Renee Pomerance told the jury on Thursday “there are some matters” the lawyers need to discuss “before we take next steps.”

Those arguments are subject to a publication ban because they will occur in the absence of the jury.

Friday will mark the fifth week of court time for the trial, with eight weeks being set aside originally.

The jury is set to return to court on Oct. 10 after the Thanksgiving long weekend, with the trial now in the hands of the defence.