Noah Vaten was arrested and brought to RCMP holding cells just hours after he allegedly fatally stabbed Esa Carriere during 2018 Canada Day celebrations in downtown ΑπΑ§ΙρΙη. And according to his cellmate, he also confessed to the alleged killing in that cell.
The arrest, however, was unrelated to Carriereβs death. Vaten was instead picked up for causing a disturbance in front of the Rutland Community Policing Office early on July 2.
Police brought Vaten to the local detachment and had him spend the night in a cell with another person theyβd arrested earlier that evening, Brandon Bailey, a tourist in ΑπΑ§ΙρΙη for Canada Day. Bailey took the stand on Thursday (Feb. 25) during the ongoing manslaughter trial for Vaten and another accused, Nathan Truant.
Bailey identified Vaten in court and described his demeanour on the night the two met as drunk, excitable and, most of all, talkative.
βHe went right to telling me the police could have him for 14 years for murder, but they threw him in the drunk tank,β Bailey said. βHe proceeded to tell me heβd just stabbed somebody.β
Bailey testified Vaten told him heβd stabbed somebody during an altercation between βhis boysβ and another man over money. Cellblock security camera footage played in court showed what Bailey described as Vaten reenacting the alleged attack, jamming his fist into his open hand in a stabbing motion.
Bailey also noted blood on Vatenβs hands, which concerned him as Vaten kept approaching him to shake his hand, even hugging him once. Vaten said he wasnβt hurt and that it was not his blood.
The conversation was cyclical, Bailey testified, always seeming to come back to the alleged killing. Bailey said Vaten revisited the subject a number of times and claimed police were βdumbβ for not realizing heβd stabbed somebody earlier that night.
The security camera footage also showed Vaten punching the cell walls and doing pushups. Bailey said this followed conversation about how βtoughβ Vaten was and believed him to be βasserting his strength.β
Vaten stumbled around much of the cell throughout the conversation as Bailey remained in the corner of the cell near the door.
The two eventually sat down, at which point the discussion changed tune, touching on several subjects, from why they were both there to the two singing and rapping together. Bailey said Vaten spoke at length about his rough home life and how he was couch surfing at the time. Vaten fell asleep about 45-minutes after he arrived at the cell.
Police released Bailey early the next morning before Vaten woke up. He initially didnβt take Vatenβs claims seriously, noting the arbitrarily chosen β14 yearsβ as a weird sentence for murder, but was later contacted by police for a statement.
Carriere died at ΑπΑ§ΙρΙη General Hospital after being stabbed in the heart near the Queensway transit exchange in downtown ΑπΑ§ΙρΙη on July 1, 2018.
Vaten and Truantβs trial continues. Two youth, whose names are protected under a publication ban, were also charged with manslaughter in Carriereβs death. One pleaded guilty to a lesser charge and was sentenced while the other is anticipated to stand trial in March.
READ MORE: Manslaughter trial begins for two accused in ΑπΑ§ΙρΙη Canada Day killing
READ MORE: Youth sentenced in ΑπΑ§ΙρΙη Canada Day killing
Do you have something to add to this story, or something else we should report on? Email: michael.rodriguez@kelownacapnews.com
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