Curtis Bonnell pulled knife during arrest for Hilary's death

Curtis Bonnell pulled a knife and barricaded himself inside his house when police went to arrest him in connection with the death of Hilary Bonnell in 2009, a jury heard on Wednesday.

Curtis Bonnell, 32, of the Esgenoopetitj First Nation in northeastern New Brunswick, is charged with the first-degree murder of Hilary, his 16-year-old first cousin.

RCMP Const. Gabriel Deveau, one of the officers on the scene duringBonnell's arrest on Nov. 8, 2009, told the Miramichi courtroom police knocked on the door, but no one responded.

They saw Bonnell througha kitchen window as he grabbed a knife from a knife holder, he said.

Officers, who had an arrest warrant for Bonnell and a search warrant for his home, ran inside and tried to taser Bonnell, but he ran to the bedroom/bathroom area, said Deveau.

The officerswere told to back out, leaving Bonnell inside, at which point it was considered a barricaded person situation, he said.

Deveau testified that he called Bonnell and tried to reason with him to go outside.

Audio of the arrest was played for the courtroom, although much of it was difficult to hear and in French.

"We don't want to hurt you, we don't want to shoot you,"Deveau told Bonnell. "The bigger it gets, the worse it'll get," he said.

"No, we don't want to take you out, we just want to talk," said Deveau. "We have a warrant to arrest you, we just want to do it peacefully."

Bonnell eventually came out and was arrested, he said.

Police had previously searched Bonnell's home with a search warrant between Nov. 3 and 5, the courtroom heard.

Deveau also testified about an aerial map of Neguac, Esgenoopetitj First Nation, Tracadie and the Tabusintac area, where Hilary's body was found.

The Crown asked the officer about how many ways there are to get into Esgenoopetitj First Nation and how long it would take to getbetween certain places, such as Bonnell's father's garage to Hilary's burial site.

The Crown alleges Bonnell picked up Hilary on Sept. 5, 2009, as the she was walking along Micmac Road in the northeastern community after a party.

Bonnell is accused of holding Hilary against her will, sexually assaulting her and killing her.

Hilary's body was discovered in a wooded area near Tracadie-Sheila after more than two months of searching.

Witness 25,Cpl. Greg Lupson, who was the lead investigator on the case,also testified Wednesday, the eighth day of the trial.

The trial is expected to last up to eight weeks.