Charge upgraded to murder in death of Racquel Junio
ctvtoronto.ca
Two men accused of abducting a Brampton, Ont. woman found dead last week appeared in court on Wednesday after learning their assault charges had been upgraded.
Macdermid Ermacora, 43, has been charged with first-degree murder and Gary Murray, 42, faces a charge of accessory to murder after the fact in connection with the death of Racquel Junio.
Both men also face charges of kidnapping and forcible confinement.
Junio, 42, went missing on Aug. 18 after police received a call that she had been forced into a black Ford pickup truck outside a home she shared with Ermacora, her estranged husband.
Her body was found in a pond in Palgrave, Ont., over the weekend, nearly 30 kilometers from her home. Police said her body showed obvious signs of trauma. An autopsy was conducted on Monday, but the results have not been made public.
Calvin Barry, Ermacora's lawyer, said the tragic event was traumatizing for everyone involved in the case, after Ermacora requested medical attention at Maplehurst Correctional Complex, where his is being held.
"A lot of people have conditions when they're in confined spaces and when they're dealing with these type of issues," he said.
Gary Batasar, Murray's lawyer, said his client has "got himself in a situation that we're going to fight vigorously and defend the case through the courts."
"It's very hard for us to believe what happened because he's not that kind of person," said Sandra Casciato, an acquaintance of Ermacora and Junio.
Casciato said she remembered Ermacora was upset in the weeks before his wife was killed.
"He was crying, he was upset that she was taking everything, he didn't know how to deal with it," she said.
Peel police have stressed that the investigation into Junio's death is still ongoing. Investigators have said that they are still trying to fill in a timeline of what happened the night she went missing.
Ermacora and Murray are both expected to return to a Brampton courtroom for a bail hearing on Aug. 29. Due to the severity of the charges, it's not expected it will be granted for the next few weeks or months.
Anyone who may have seen Ermacora's pickup truck on Thursday morning or anyone with more information is asked to call Peel Regional Police at 905- 453-3311 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).
With files from CTV Toronto's Tamara Cherry.
http://m.ctv.ca/topstories/20110824/charges-upgraded-in-racquel-junio-death-110824.html
