Man accused in 1998 killing of Renee Sweeney in Sudbury denied bail a 3rd time

The 42-year-old man charged with one of the most notorious killingsin Sudbury's history has been denied bail for a third time.

Justice Patrick Boucherissued his decision on the latest bail request from Steve Wright on Monday morning.

Wright has been behind bars since he was arrested three years ago inthe 1998 stabbing of Renee Sweeney at a video store.

His previous bail hearings were inFebruary 2019 and May 2020.

This latest bail review comes after Wright was transferred in November 2021 from the Sudbury jail to a facility in the Toronto area, after contracting COVID-19.

The evidence the court heard during the virtual hearing in Decemberand the reasons Boucher gave for his decisionarecovered by a publication ban and cannot be made public until after the murder trial.

It has been delayed several times because of the pandemic and changes to Wright's defence team.

He is currently scheduled to stand trial on the charge of second-degree murderin September 2022.