A jury has begun deliberating the fate of two men accused of killing a young Toronto woman who disappeared more than five years ago.
Dellen Millard, 32, of Toronto, and Mark Smich, 30, of Oakville, have pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder in the presumed death of 23-year-old Laura Babcock, whose body has not been found.
The Crown alleges the pair killed Babcock in July 2012 because she became the odd woman out in a love triangle with Millard and his girlfriend, Christina Noudga.
They say Millard and Smich planned the murder for months and covered up their crime by burning Babcock's body in an animal incinerator that was later found on Millard's farm near Waterloo.
Both Millard, who is representing himself, and Smich's lawyer have said the Crown hasn't proven beyond a reasonable doubt that Babcock is dead.
The judge presiding over the trial has told jurors the case hinges upon a ``large and complex'' body of circumstantial evidence about whether Babcock is dead and if Millard and Smich caused her death.
During the trial, there was a publication ban on the mens' previous convictions in the 2013 murder of Ancaster man Tim Bosma. The judge had the order put in place to prevent tainting the jury's perception of Millard's and Smich's criminal past. As a result, the media was also prevented from talking about the Bosma case.
Any jurors who knew about that case were told to not let it sway their upcoming decision. The jury is expected to deliberate for several days.
Millard also faces a first-degree murder charge in the death of his father back in November of 2012. That trial is expected to get underway in March.
With files from Newstalk 1010