Witness described 'frantic' and 'reckless' scene following bush party shooting
On Thursday, Maya Pluchowski resumed with her testimony telling the jury about the moments after an 18-year-old Western University student was shot and killed.
She said she was at the bush party off of Pack Road in southwest London on July 30 of 2021 with one of the accused, Emily Altmann.
She said that after an argument and harsh words with another female partygoer over a thrown drink, she left the wooded lot along with Altmann and a group of friends.
Pluchowski testified that Altmann told the group, "I have a friend named Candace that I'm going to call and she's going to beat her up."
She then continued, "I could tell she (Altmann) was intoxicated...the overreaction to the situation lead me to believe that alcohol was influencing that."
Pluchowski said her group drove around for a while and Altmann was on the phone calling people when they stopped.
She said Altmann joined others and went back to the bush party, but she remained behind with another friend in the car, testifying, "At one point we heard what sounded like a single gunshot."
Pluchowski then said that all of a sudden, Altmann and the group raced back to the vehicle, "They very quickly jumped into the car and Emily started the car immediately and drove off very frantically and they were just screaming, 'Oh my God."’
A shocked and confused Pluchowski then stated, "I asked what happened, and that's when Emily was like, 'I can't believe they shot him, I can't believe they shot him in the stomach.’"
She said as they drove away, "She (Altmann) was driving recklessly, she was texting, calling, not paying attention to where she was going."
Moments later, emergency crews arrived at the scene to find Josue Silva with a gunshot wound to the abdomen. He was later pronounced dead in hospital.
The 22-year-old Altmann, along with the co-accused 23-year-old Carlos Guerra Guerra, have both pleaded not guilty to second degree murder and assault causing bodily harm.
Later in the day, Pluchowski told the jury that as they drove away from the scene, the group in Altmann's car were given instructions to stay quiet.
"She had read a text out loud to us that was, 'Tell your friends to keep their mouth shut...or else something will happen to them too,’” Pluchowski said, speaking about Altmann.
The witness said she was scared at the time, "I believed that dangerous people would potentially come harm me as well, if I co-operated with police."
Pluchowski would eventually speak with London police investigators about what she saw and heard on the night of the bush party over three years ago.
So far, there have been 11 days of evidence heard in the lengthy trial which is expected to last several more weeks.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'Canada will be absolutely fine': Justin Trudeau, his ministers and Pierre Poilievre congratulate Donald Trump
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and members of his cabinet congratulated Donald Trump Wednesday morning on his second United States presidential election win, amid questions about how the federal government intends to navigate a second term.
What might Donald Trump's election win mean for Canadians
Following president-elect Donald Trump's decisive election victory, there are sure to be significant knock-on effects for Canada. Here's a look at the different areas in which a second Trump presidency may affect Canadians.
4 ways in which Donald Trump's election was historic
Donald Trump's election victory was history-making in several respects, even as his defeat of U.S. Vice-President Kamala Harris prevented other firsts. She would have been the nation's first Black and South Asian woman to be president.
Kamala Harris concedes: Here's what she said in her speech
Democratic Vice-President Kamala Harris has conceded the U.S. election to Republican Donald Trump.
Who won the popular vote? U.S. election vote totals from the past 40 years
Donald Trump won the U.S. presidency on Tuesday, and as of Wednesday morning, was also ahead in the popular vote. Historically, though, the candidate with the most votes hasn’t always won the contest.
Canada orders wind up of TikTok's Canadian business, app access to continue
Canada ordered the dissolution of TikTok's Canadian business after a national security review of the Chinese company behind the social media platform.
Newfoundland hockey player suspended, banned from local arena after off-ice fight with fan
A combination of a thrown stick and thrown punches have given a senior hockey player in Newfoundland a three-game suspension and an indefinite ban from one of his league's six arenas.
Kingston, Ont. doctor fighting OHIP clawback of $660K in pandemic vaccination payments
A Kingston doctor is in a dispute with the Ontario Ministry of Health, which is trying to clawback more than $600,000 in OHIP payments.
Read the full transcript of Donald Trump's victory speech
The former U.S. president and now president-elect addressed a crowd of supporters at his campaign headquarters in West Palm Beach, Fla., shortly after 2:30 a.m. EST, Wednesday morning.