Close X
Friday, September 20, 2024
ADVT 
National

Murder Trial In Death Of Tim Bosma Begins With Jury Selection Monday In Hamilton

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 17 Jan, 2016 01:14 PM
    HAMILTON — About an hour after the sun had set on a day in early May 2013, Tim Bosma took two men for a test drive in his truck — never to return.
     
    The trial of two men accused in his death is set to begin Monday with jury selection, which is expected to last up to two weeks.
     
    Lawyers for Dellen Millard and Mark Smich have said both men will plead not guilty to charges of first-degree murder. 
     
    The case of the missing 32-year-old Hamilton man — who had a wife and a two-year-old daughter — and later the discovery of his remains, "burned beyond recognition," rocked his tight-knit Dutch community in rural Hamilton and made headlines across the country.
     
    According to police, on May 6, 2013, a man called Bosma to arrange a test drive of his black, 2007 Dodge Ram pickup that he had advertised for sale online. Around 9:20 p.m., two men showed up at his house.
     
    "I'll be right back," a smiling Bosma told his wife, Sharlene Bosma would recall at a news conference a few days later.
     
    Within an hour, she called her husband on his cellphone and when he didn't answer she called police. 
     
    "I ask and I beg and I plead to whomever has my husband to please let him go," she said through tears.
     
    "It was just a truck, it was just a truck."
     
    Police initially treated it as a missing person's case, but due to the "unusual nature" of his disappearance, homicide investigators took over.
     
    The police response was massive. More than 150 officers took part in the search that also included K9 units, police horses, planes and helicopters.
     
    The investigation quickly spread across neighbouring jurisdictions and involved forces from Toronto, Brantford, York Region, Waterloo and Ontario Provincial Police.
     
    At the Bosma home, his friends and family set up their own command centre. Friends gathered in the family's garage around a large map of the area, deciding search paths and making plans to plaster the area with "Find Tim" posters.
     
    Peter Lowe, who'd been an acquaintance of Bosma's when they were teenagers, found himself in the family's inner circle after showing up at the door a few days after Bosma went missing.
     
    Knowing his way around social media, Lowe was quickly given the task of boosting interest in the search online. The family's newly created Facebook page exploded with interest and the hashtag #FindTimBosma made the rounds way beyond the Hamilton borders.
     
    Police have said they believe Bosma was killed shortly after he went missing.
     
    Dellen Millard, of Toronto, was arrested on May 10 and was charged with forcible confinement and theft of a vehicle.
     
    The search for Bosma continued, with investigators searching two properties owned by Millard, who is the heir to a local aviation business started by his grandfather nearly 50 years ago.
     
    On May 13, police found Bosma's truck. The next morning, police showed up at the Bosma house to deliver the news the family never wanted to hear: Tim Bosma's body had been found "burned beyond recognition."
     
    On May 15, Millard was charged with first-degree murder in Bosma's death.
     
    More than a week later, 1,000 people gathered at a hall in Hamilton to say goodbye to Bosma — the same hall Tim and Sharlene got married in three years earlier.
     
    On May 22, police announced the arrest of Mark Smich, from Oakville, Ont., who was also charged with first-degree murder in Bosma's death.
     
    Lowe, Tim's childhood friend, has since become a spokesman for the Bosmas.
     
    "The family is grateful for the love and support shown by their community," Lowe told The Canadian Press.

    MORE National ARTICLES

    7 Stranded Hikers Rescued Near Vancouver's Cypress Mountain

    7 Stranded Hikers Rescued Near Vancouver's Cypress Mountain
    Team Leader Mike Danks said his team was deployed after the hikers lost sight of the trail, and had everyone off the mountain by midnight.

    7 Stranded Hikers Rescued Near Vancouver's Cypress Mountain

    Tragic Death: Mumbai Girl Falls Into Sea While Clicking Selfie, Youth Missing

    Tragic Death: Mumbai Girl Falls Into Sea While Clicking Selfie, Youth Missing
    The 18-year-old girl, identified as Tarannum Ansari, and her two friends Anjum Khan (19) and Kasuri Khan (19) slipped while clicking a selfie with their mobile phones and fell into the swirling seawaters off the rocky beach of Bandra Bandstand.

    Tragic Death: Mumbai Girl Falls Into Sea While Clicking Selfie, Youth Missing

    Halifax Man Finds Apparent Military Hard Drive At Recycling Depot

    Halifax Man Finds Apparent Military Hard Drive At Recycling Depot
    Pete Stevens, who works in the electronics industry, says he found the hard drive about a year ago at a recycling depot and suspected that it previously belonged to the military after running recovery software.

    Halifax Man Finds Apparent Military Hard Drive At Recycling Depot

    Liberals Open To Broad Security Revamp, Not Just 'Problematic Elements': Ralph Goodale

    Liberals Open To Broad Security Revamp, Not Just 'Problematic Elements': Ralph Goodale
    The government will give Canadians a chance to have their say before deciding what changes to make, Goodale said in an interview

    Liberals Open To Broad Security Revamp, Not Just 'Problematic Elements': Ralph Goodale

    Devoted Bear Dog Dies At 15 After Life Of Helping Keep Wildlife, People Safe

    Devoted Bear Dog Dies At 15 After Life Of Helping Keep Wildlife, People Safe
    Alongside his brother, Mica — who died at the age of 10 — Kuma assisted Fish and Wildlife officers in southern Alberta with keeping wildlife from wandering into dangerous scenarios for both the animals and the human population.

    Devoted Bear Dog Dies At 15 After Life Of Helping Keep Wildlife, People Safe

    Lufthansa Flight Diverted To Calgary After Reports Of Passengers Feeling Ill

    Lufthansa Flight Diverted To Calgary After Reports Of Passengers Feeling Ill
    Flight LH452 touched down shortly before 2 p.m. Friday afternoon after reports of passengers feeling ill.

    Lufthansa Flight Diverted To Calgary After Reports Of Passengers Feeling Ill