Double murder suspect has charges stayed in historical Calgary homicides
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A letter from Edmonton Chief Crown prosecutor Sarah Langley was filed in Calgary Court of King's Bench on Friday staying two first-degree murder charges against Stuart Douglas MacGregor.
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MacGregor, also known as Surridge, was arrested in November 2023, and had been in custody since despite three attempts by his lawyers, Rebecca Snukal and Michael Bates, to have him released on bail.
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'Pursuant to section 579 of the Criminal Code you are hereby directed by counsel instructed by the Attorney General for that purpose to make an entry on the record that the proceedings against the above named accused on the above named charges are stayed,' Langley's letter to the clerk of the court said.
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'If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact our office.'
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MacGregor's arrest came just days before a second suspect, Leonard Brian Cochrane, was convicted on the same two charges in connection with the July 11, 1994, fatal shootings of Barry Buchart and Trevor Deakins in their Radisson Heights home.
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Cochrane was linked to the scene by police using investigative genetic genealogy, which compares individuals in known DNA databases and to material found at the scene to narrow the list of suspects to relatives with similar genetic markers.
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When MacGregor was charged police said they used the same technology to lead them to a second suspect.
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In Cochrane's trial, he testified he had gone to the victims' residence to buy drugs from Buchart after meeting him a short time earlier at a nearby convenience store where the drug dealer asked if he wanted to purchase some narcotics.
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After agreeing to purchase an ounce of marijuana and having gone home to pick up some cash to pay for it, Cochrane said he found himself inside the basement suite in the early morning hours when two balaclava-clad intruders stormed in.
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Cochrane said he was bloodied during a struggle with one of the intruders leading to his blood being found at the scene, but Justice Keith Yamauchi dismissed his claim noting the drops of blood of the offender's found at the scene were inconsistent with his claim he was bleeding heavily.
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