Dellen Millard’s mechanic may have seen Laura Babcock’s remains inside a large incinerator. That shocking testimony was heard at trial today; Millard and Mark Smich have pleaded not guilty to murder.
The jury had seen pictures and text messages from Shane Schlatman, who was described as Dellen Millard’s mechanic, today we heard he did a lot more than fix Millard’s cars.
Shane Schlatman testified throughout the day about the work he did for his boss, Dellen Millard. Mostly Schlatman worked in Millard’s airplane hangar in Toronto then Waterloo.
Schlatman told court he did a little of everything for Millard, fixing his fleet of vehicles and building a homemade incinerator from scratch. Schlatman told court Millard wanted it to burn garbage so he wouldn’t have to haul it from his hangar. But the homemade incinerator didn’t work well, Schlatman testified. So Millard ordered one used by farmers for deadstock for more than $15 000. He wanted it urgently and he wanted it to be mobile, so Schlatman ordered steel and he, Millard, and Mark Smich built a $7000 trailer for the incinerator.
Millard told Schlatman his uncle was a vet and needed a cheaper way to dispose of pets. They were going to travel to different vet clinics and offer a pet cremation business.
The incinerator was nearly 10 feet tall, but they welded, bolted and chained it to the homemade trailer, then Millard towed it away with his Yukon, the day the crown alleges 23-year-old Laura Babcock’s remains were incinerated.
About a month later, Schlatman was sent to Millard’s farm, about 10 minutes away from the hangar, to refill the propane tank that was attached to the incinerator trailer. He noticed the machine had a bad, rotting smell and when he opened it he noticed ashes and what could have been pieces of bone inside.
Schlatman will be back on the stand for more cross examination tomorrow, then we expect to hear from Dellen Millard’s uncle, the veterinarian. Also this week we still expect to hear from Mark Smich’s girlfriend, Marlena Meneses.
