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 Melissa Todorovic, who was known as M.T. during her trial for the murder of Stefanie Rengel, is seen in this undated photo. Todorovic was sentenced to life in prison for Rengel's slaying July 28, 2009. (Handout) |
TORONTO -- A girl on trial for the first-degree murder of Stefanie Rengel was the driving force of hate, obsession and "intense jealousy" behind the killing, a jury heard yesterday.
In his closing address, Crown prosecutor Robin Flumerfelt told a jury they need look no further than the 17-year-old accused -- known as MT -- when looking for why a now-19-year-old called DB slaughtered Rengel outside her East York home on New Year's Day in 2008.
"Without her (MT), there is no crime; without her, there is no murder; without her, we are not here," Flumerfelt said. "Without her, Stefanie Rengel goes on living the life she is destined to live."
He outlined a litany of electronic messages -- between May 2007 and the moments following the murder -- where MT tells DB she wants Rengel dead, using sex as a reward.
In one particularly graphic exchange in October 2007, DB writes: "What about Stef?"
MT responds: "Bang bang."
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The boyfriend then text messages: "I need a bang bang first I wanna bang you."
And MT replies: I want her dead ... lol we've been through this ... if it takes more than a week we're just going to be friends."
Flumerfelt told the jury "lol" -- laughing out loud -- was MT's "little insurance policy" so that she could later claim she was never really serious about doing harm to Rengel.
It appears throughout 30,000 pages of instant messages that were entered into evidence at the trial.
DB continued to stall through the summer and fall before MT turned up the heat in December.
"She held out sex as the carrot for her boyfriend to fulfil her evil intentions," Flumerfelt said.
By New Year's Eve DB was trying to lure Rengel outside but the 14-year-old refused to leave the house because she was a "family kid," she "bought herself one more day of life."
Around dinner time on New Year's Day, Rengel did leave the house and disappeared around the corner where she was stabbed viciously six times and left to die.
Flumerfelt alleged DB was so efficient that he had left the scene before Rengel even fell to the ground.
But defence counsel Marshall Sack warned the jury about jumping to conclusions based on the excerpts from the "Amazonian underbrush" of online chat evidence they must read through.
He urged the nine-man, three-woman jury to take their time and read through the entirety of chats to discover Rengel only played a very small part of MT and DB's conversation.
"The Internet makes it difficult to convey subtle nuances of emotions," Sack said. "Not everything everyone sends is an expression of their intentions."
Sack will continue his closing address today and the jury is expected to begin deliberations later this week.
BRIAN.GRAY@SUNMEDIA.CA