Nunavut court: re-trial of Pond Inlet man accused of murder continues this week

The re-trial of a man accused of murdering his older brother in 2011 got under way September in Pond Inlet.

Ruben Arnakallak, 34, is accused of second-degree murder in the Nov. 2011 death of Esa Arnakallak.

Arnakallak stood trial in February 2013 on the same charge, but the presiding judge declared a mistrial.

In December 2013, Justice Neil Sharkey set a new trial date after ruling Arnakallak would remain in custody until a new trial.

The trial, which started Sept. 15,was originally scheduled to last three weeks.

But an illness and a death in Pond Inlet delayed the trial after it had started, Crown prosecutor Barry McLaren told Nunatsiaq News by email.

“The trial will continue into next week,” McLaren said.

Nunavut RCMP announced the recent death of a 43-year old Pond Inlet man in a Sept. 28 news release.

Police laid a second-degree murder charge against another man the following day.

But McLaren could not confirm this was the death that caused the delay in Arnakallak’s trial. The RCMP did not immediately respond to efforts to confirm this either.

Alison Crowe, Arnakallak’s defence lawyer, told Nunatsiaq News in an email that she expects her client will testify this week.