'I killed my roommate': Jury shown texts from accused to dad

On the second day of Nikolas Ibey's first-degree murder trial, the jury was shown a bloodied piece of wood found in the bedroom of the Inuk woman he's accused of killing two years ago.

Crown prosecutors paced slowly before the 14 jurors, holding thatkey piece of evidence andpointing out spots of blood, a hole from which a screw had protruded, and places where the timber fibres were missing.

Pictures shown earlier in the trial showed what looked to be the same piece of wood located in the rental unit's basement, where Ibey had been living and working on renovations.

On Friday, members of the Ottawa Police Service's forensicsdivision are expected to continue testifying and introduceevidence related to the piece of wood, blood stains and other items recovered from the scene.

The five-week trial started Wednesday with the Crown alleging Ibey, now 35, was drinking, taking drugs, and was frustrated in his efforts to find an escort late into the night of Sept. 10 and early morning of Sept. 11, 2022,before sexually assaulting and killing his new roommate.

Savanna Pikuyak, 22, had recently moved to Ottawa from Nunavut, and had moved in with Ibeyjust four days earlier.

'I killed my roommate'

On Thursday, the jurysaw text messages Ibey sent to his father on the morning of Sept. 11, 2022, confessing to killing his housemate.

"I'm in big, big trouble," and "I killed my roommate," the messages read in part.

Ibey's father testified for the prosecution, recalling the frantic moments between receiving thosetexts, realizing it wasn't a joke, calling emergency services and driving to the scene.

Ibey's messages to his dad also included suicide threats, instructions to "call the cops," and the assertion that he was "going to jail until I die."

Earlier in the trial the jury heard how prior to his text confession, Ibey had searched online about the lengths of sentences for murder and first-degree murder.

Father, brother of accused testify

Pikuyak answered an ad on Facebookto rent a room in thethree-bedroomrow homeon Woodvale Green in Ottawa, the Crowntold the jury earlier in the trial.

Ibey's brother had bought the home the previous month. He offered Ibeythe basementroom andput him in charge of finding other tenants and collecting rent.

Their68-year-old adoptive father James Ibey was in Ottawa to help with renovations at the investment property. Hetestified he was having coffee and a cigarette when the texts from his son started arriving.

His initial response was to tell Ibey, "lol stop the bullshit," but he soon wentinto what he described as shock as he realized it wasn't a joke.

He said he woke Ibey's brother Christopher Ibey, who thencalled emergency services. The two then drove to the rental property where they found police had already arrived.

Near the end of the day Thursday, thejury was shown graphic photos of the crime scene.

Nikolas Ibey, now 35, pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder in Ottawa's Superior Court at the outset of his trial this week, after the Crown rejected his guilty plea to the lesser offence of second-degree murder.

On Thursday he sat slouched forwardin the prisoner's box wearinga white T-shirt and grey pants, his arms resting on his kneesfor much of the proceedings.