Igloolik man to stand trial this December on six-year-old murder charge

After waiting more than six years, Peter Angutimarik of Igloolik will stand trial this December for a second degree murder charge related to the 2009 death of 19-year-old Esa Angutiqjuaq. (FILE PHOTO)

An Igloolik man facing a second-degree murder charge will stand trial in December at the Nunavut Court of Justice in Iqaluit.

Peter Angutimarik was charged on Feb. 28, 2009 with second-degree murder in connection with the death of 19-year-old Esa Angutiqjuaq.

Angutimarik faces a two-week trial starting Dec. 14.

Before that, however, defence lawyer Alison Crowe and Crown prosecutor Amy Porteous still have to make submissions at Angutimarik’s voir dire hearing.

Voir dire hearings are held to determine if certain evidence can be admitted at trial.

That hearing is expected sometime before the trial.

The maximum sentence for second-degree murder is a life imprisonment, if found guilty with no eligibility to apply for parole for at least 10 years.

Angutimarik, who was 26 at the time the offence is alleged to have occurred, attended court via videoconference from the Baffin Correctional Centre July 14.

He wore baggy blue prison sweat pants and a blue sweatshirt, sported a shaved head, and sat patiently with his hands in his lap throughout his brief court appearance.

When Justice Robert Kilpatrick excused him from the proceeding July 14, Angutimarik said “all right” and left quietly.

In Feb. 28 of 2009, Igloolik RCMP responded to a report that a man needed medical attention at a residence in the community.

When police arrived, Angutiqjuaq was already dead.

Angutimarik has been held in custody since his arrest in 2009.