Man convicted of murdering Japanese exchange student to get new trial
Posted February 2, 2021 5:23 pm.
Last Updated February 2, 2021 5:24 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – The man convicted of killing a Japanese student in Vancouver in 2016 in a high-profile murder has seen his conviction overturned and a new trial ordered.
The BC Court of Appeal ruled the judge in the case against 50-year old William Schneider erred in allowing certain evidence into the trial.
“The overheard telephone conversation should not have been admitted into evidence,” reads the appeal. “Its admission amounts to reversible error and warrants a new trial. The utterances were not logically relevant, as they lacked sufficient context for the jury to be able to determine their meaning.”
Schneider was convicted in 2018 of murdering 30-year-old Natsumi Kogawa who had been studying in Vancouver before her disappearance.
She was found dead inside a suitcase in a West End neighbourhood in 2016.
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Schneider was convicted of second-degree murder, and sentenced to life, with no chance of parole for 14 years.
The Crown has not said whether or not it intends to retry the case.
