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A cell phone. A bent knife. A body found down a steep embankment.
These pieces of photo evidence and more have been entered as exhibits during a North Okanagan murder trial as forensic identification specialists fill out the blanks regarding exactly what happened to a Lumby mother two years ago.
The trial of Vitali Stefanski continued in Kamloops Wednesday, June 3, with the Crown presenting graphic photo evidence of his ex-wife, slain Lumby woman Tatjana Stefanski.
Vitali is accused of second-degree murder in relation to the death of 44-year-old Tatjana in April 2024. Vitali pleaded not guilty to the charge last week, sending the matter to B.C. Supreme Court trial by judge and jury.
The Crown had previously told the court that a bent and bloodied knife had been found near Tatjana’s body which had the DNA of both Tatjana and Vitali, adding the victim suffered 21 sharp-force wounds, as well as seven stab wounds to her chest and ribs that proved fatal.
Cpl. Rob Riemer, a forensics specialist with the Revelstoke RCMP, took the stand Wedneday to describe the evidence he gathered on April 14, 2024.
Riemer said he arrived at Vernon Jubilee Hospital that morning to gather evidence from Vitali, who the court previously heard had been taken to the hospital with a self-inflicted wound to his abdomen.
Riemer said as Vitali lay in a hospital bed, he took photos of Vitali’s feet, front torso, stomach area, his hands, fingernails and his abdominal injury, which he said was a 1.2-centimetre laceration.
That afternoon, Riemer was tasked with heading to the scene of a body that had been found down an embankment at the 19-kilometre mark of Mabel Lake Road outside of Lumby, in a remote and heavily forested area near the lake.
He said he had to use a rope tied to a stump to rappel himself down the steep embankment.
Being careful not to disturb the crime scene which was resting on loose soil, Riemer said he took photographs of Tatjana’s body and some items surrounding it.
His camera captured images of some beer cans and a shotgun shell in the vicinity of the body, as well as a black boot, a 2024-25 Lumby visitor’s guide, a magazine, a white plastic knife sheath, a brown leather sheath, and a bent and bloodied knife. He also took photos of Tatjana’s body. Each photo was shown in court.
Riemer said he seized the knife and a cell phone from the scene, leaving the rest of the scene untouched and carefully marked. He drew a diagram of the scene in his notebook.
Search and rescue crews rappelled the body, then in a body bag, up the embankment, Riemer said.
In cross-examination, defence lawyer Tony Lagemaat asked Riemer if he had noticed any other injuries on Vitali besides the one on his abdomen. Riemer said he had not. He added he collected swabs of Vitali’s fingernails but did not at this time know the results of those tests.
Lagemaat asked Riemer if he was familiar with different sorts of knives, such as fishing and hunting knives, to which Riemer said he wasn’t. The defence lawyer also asked if Riemer had ever seen a knife with a piece of steel perpendicular to the blade and the handle. The officer said he hadn’t.