Method of Assessment

Real-life criminal investigations require all investigators to work together effectively as members of a team. This means that all members must communicate about what they are doing prior to commencing and throughout the entire investigation, to ensure that their individual efforts are contributing positively to the investigation as a whole. In real-life investigations - and for the purposes of this group presentation - a coordinated effort amongst all team members is essential to success.

Groups will be assessed both on their ability to identify and discuss the different factors that should be considered by investigators during a serious criminal investigation (as outlined in the examples given above); and, on their demonstrated ability to value and coordinate the contributions of each member toward achieving the goal of the group. In other words, your mark will be determined both by the content of your presentation and by your ability to demonstrate that you can work together effectively as an investigative team. In investigative work, whether in the public or private sector, cooperation is essential for success. Each group will be assessed a mark out of a maximum of 20 points; each group member will receive the same mark as their group.

Scenario

The scenario below is based on a real-life criminal investigation. The information provided is taken from publicly available information contained in court and other official records. The scenario includes some (but not all) of the details that were established by investigators at various stages during the investigation. You will need to consider these details during your presentations but given the time limitations you do not necessarily have to discuss all of them. Of the details that are provided below, decide which ones you think are most important in allowing you to demonstrate, during your presentation, that you understand the basic investigative process and the important factors that must be considered to ensure the success of a criminal investigation. You are not limited to only discussing the details listed below. Where there are "gaps" in the information provided below (and there are), you may also discuss what steps you would have taken to fill in those "gaps" during your investigation of Moe Smith's murder.

The Murder of Moe Smith

The dead body of Moe Smith was found behind a warehouse in the west end of Toronto. The investigation determined the facts as set out below. The facts are not set out in any particular order, it is up to you to determine which ones are most important for the purposes of your investigation and presentation.

On September 1, 2022, at 6:30am, the victim's dead body was located by a worker behind a warehouse located at 10 Steel Street

10 Steel Street is located in the west end of Toronto

The coroner attended the scene and ordered the victim's body to be taken to the coroner's office for a post-mortem examination by a forensic pathologist

The post-mortem examination revealed that the victim had suffered multiple, severe stab wounds to his torso, neck and hands

The victim was a cab driver for the Busy Taxi company in Toronto

The victim's wallet, including three hundred dollars in cash was located in his jacket

A cable bill was located in the victim's clothing which led to the police identifying him as Moe Smith

The victim's Busy Taxi company cab was located at 7:30am on September 1, 2022, in the parking lot of the Kipper Downs Plaza, which is approximately a ten-minute drive away from 10 Steel Street

Forensic examination of the cab revealed a large amount of blood inside, on the seats, the walls, the floor, and the ceiling

No forensic link was found to link the deceased's taxi cab to the suspect who was later arrested

A number of items were found at the crime scene: a hair in the victim's right hand; and in the victim's cab, two bloodstained twenty-dollar bills; two cigarette butts in the rear ashtray; and a drinking straw with blood and hair on it in the right rear footwell

Surveillance footage at the Kipper Downs Plaza shows a minivan arriving in the parking lot at 4:50 am, September 1, 2022. Two hours later at 6:56am the deceased's taxi cab entered the parking lot and parked next to the minivan. Seconds later the minivan drove out of the parking lot. The deceased's taxi cab was left in the parking lot

Three days after Moe Smith was murdered, another cab driver in nearby Brampton was murdered, he was stabbed in the neck and his wallet was taken

As the minivan drove away it almost collided with the vehicle of Debby Kroll - an employee who was arriving for work at the Big Value Supermarket located in the Kipper Downs Plaza. Kroll described the minivan as "GM style", probably dark blue in color but she couldn't be sure

The victim's wife, Nell Smith was advised of her husband's death and had no idea who would want to kill him. She told police he was in the habit of carrying large sums of money in his wallet and of counting it in his cab. She said he left for work at 6:15am

An analysis of Nell Smith's financial records indicated that she has co-signed a loan for a man named Zak Wally

The victim's children were interviewed and none of them knew anyone by the name of Zak Wally

It was determined that Zak Wally was a butcher at the A1 Butcher Shop located at 3000 Islington Ave in Toronto

Undercover police officers followed Nell Smith for a number of days as she went about her daily life

Nell Smith was observed, on a number of occasions, purchasing meat at the A1 Butcher Shop

An analysis of Nell Smith's cellphone records indicated that she had made a large number of calls to the A1 Butcher Shop both before and after the murder. Analysis also indicated that she had made a large number of calls to the personal cellphone of Zak Wally before and after the murder

An analysis of provincial motor vehicle records indicated that Zak Wally owned a Plymouth van, which was light green in color

When he was arrested, Zak Wally had what appeared to be a severe wound to his upper chest that was partially healed

During undercover surveillance of Zak Wally, he was observed to drive a green Plymouth van to the parking lot of the Woodfall View Shopping Centre in Toronto. He was met in the parking lot by Nell Smith who got into his van.

Undercover police followed the van to the parking lot of the Bedford Inn located north of Toronto where Zak Wally and Nell Smith were observed entering one of the motel rooms. Wally and Smith emerged from the motel room about an hour later and were followed back to Toronto by undercover police officers

Using a wiretap, police intercepted phone calls made between Nell Smith and Zak Wally which indicated that they were having an affair

When interviewed by police, Nell Smith said that a number of months after the murder, during a heated argument about her new boyfriend (Farid Davos), Zak Wally had confessed to her that he had killed her husband Moe Smith and said he would kill her in the same way if she didn't leave Davos

Three months before Moe Smith's murder, another cab driver who worked for the Busy Taxi had his throat slashed

Nell Smith said that the last time she had seen her husband was when he was leaving for work at 6:30am the morning of the murder

Zak Wally was interviewed a couple months before he was arrested and admitted to knowing Nell and Moe Smith who were regular customers at the A1 Butcher Shop

Zak Wally voluntarily gave samples of his hair and blood to police

Over the course of the investigation Zak Wally made a number of sometimes contradictory statements to police in which he told them: he drove a Toyota Corolla, but he did not mention that he owned a van; said he was not having an affair with Nell Smith, then said he was having an affair with Nell Smith; denied having seen Nell Smith at a social event that police knew both he and she had attended; when he discovered that he had been followed by undercover police to the Bedford Inn with Nell Smith, he said that he had taken Nell Smith there "just to talk"

After he was arrested a number of months after the murder, Zak Wally was interviewed and admitted to the affair with Nell Smith, but denied having committed the murder of Moe Smith

Nell Smith, the victim's wife and the accused's lover testified at Zak Wally's murder trial that he had confessed to killing Moe Smith and had threatened to kill her. However, when she was cross-examined by defence counsel she said she wasn't sure that he had confessed. When she was re-examined by the crown attorney she said she was sure that Zak Wally had confessed to her that he had killed Moe Smith

QUESTION: The significance of the various pieces of physical evidence that were gathered from the crime scene or scenes, and why you feel they were, or were not, significant;