Ighani trial ends in acquittal

The long, drawn-out  trial of Afshin Ighani ended late last week with Ighani’s acquittal.

Defence lawyer Paul McMurray, fired by Ighani last May before being rehired in time for Ighani’s Penticton court hearing on Friday, Jan.10, was able convince Judge Nitya Iyer there was sufficient doubt about key witnesses Jodie Walker and Christopher Gliege’s testimony.

Ighani was on trial on 10 counts including kidnapping and weapons offences related to an incident that took place in and around Princeton on April 22, 2017.

Walker had little recollection of the events that day under oath in court, and could not recall her previous testimony to police.

Gleige testified during a preliminary hearing but fled to the United States prior to Ighani’s trial getting underway.

McMurray called the events of the day in question “a voluntary trip to the coast that went sideways,” telling the judge that something went wrong that gave rise to a dispute between the three parties.

He said Gliege and Walker were two people “clearly involved in drug use and drinking.”

“You can’t rely on anything they say. There is no reconciling the inconsistencies in their testimony,” McMurray said.

The judge acquitted Ighani on all 10 counts, according to court documents.

He remains in custody, however, facing a new date in court on Jan. 27 to fix dates for a trial involving two assaults at the Okanagan Correctional Centre.

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