CAYUGA—The first-degree murder trial of suspects Randall McKenzie and Brandi Stewart-Sperry wound through an eventful third week at the Superior Court of Justice in Cayuga from Monday, April 7 to Friday, April 11, 2025.
On April 7, members of McKenzie’s family took the stand, including his brother Richard McKenzie, who returned to his Mississauga Road home after an appointment on December 27, 2022 about an hour after OPP Constable Greg Pierzchala was fatally shot six times on the side of Indian Line northeast of Hagersville.
Richard went to a trailer on the property for a cigarette and found the door locked. Both Richard and his wife Katelyn Garlow reported encountering a pacing, frantic Randall inside, while Stewart-Sperry sat on a chair saying, “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, it’s all my fault.”
Richard had seen a pair of Six Nations police cruisers, lights on, while returning home. He testified to allowing Randall to use his tools to work on the stolen Silverado used to flee the scene of the shooting that was then parked on his property.
“I told him to get his s–t and get out of here,” testified Richard, noting a text message from a neighbour alerting him police were in the area and wanting his brother to leave.
Both Richard and Garlow came under scrutiny during the proceedings, with Garlow changing her testimony under cross examination, initially testifying to hearing Randall talk about not wanting to go back to jail, but under cross-examination by defense counsel Douglas Holt instead saying that had not happened on that day and she didn’t recall when she had heard Randall talk about concerns of going back to jail.
Richard testified to hearing Stewart-Sperry explain she had been driving to pick up breakfast while Randall slept in the back of the vehicle on the day of the shooting. He also testified that he hadn’t mentioned this information when initially questioned by police and several times after about the incident, only revealing that detail under subpoena in March 2025.
Under cross-examination by Stewart-Sperry’s defence counsellor, Scott Reid, Richard admitted that he had also given varying information to police at different times related to how many times he had met Stewart-Sperry prior to December 27, 2022.
Another witness and family member of McKenzie, Catherine Savage, was inside Richard’s home that day. She testified to encountering Randall, who asked her to help him with changing the tire on the Silverado. She testified to asking him directly if the truck was stolen, to which he said no, with Savage stating that Stewart-Sperry claimed ownership of the vehicle.
On April 9, a statement of fact read by prosecutors confirmed that the Nissan Armada found in the ditch on Indian Line on December 27, 2022 at the site of the shooting, which was driven by Stewart-Sperry, was stolen from the parking lot of a restaurant in Hamilton the night before.
Another statement of fact detailed a video found on a phone belonging to McKenzie, which depicted him driving a vehicle with a firearm in hand on December 14, 2022. Also on that phone were recent Criminal Code searches on punishments related to manslaughter and murder, and text messages that make several references to perpetrating violence on police officers.
The text messages found on McKenzie’s phone reveal he was considering leaving the province with a fake ID, claims that he had “f—-d up the cops last night” with spike strips, threats to die by suicide, a fear of further jail time, and variations on “shooting out with the cops.”
Also detailed were connections between the two accused and a series of crimes committed in December 2022, including a break-and-enter and stolen cars. Items from all noted crimes were found in one or both suspects’ possession at the time of their arrest, including credit cards, various pieces of identification, and a key fob.
Jurors got a first-hand look at the Glock 19 handgun that was allegedly used to kill Constable Pierzchala, as OPP Forensic Officer Adam Davidson approached the juror’s box to display the item. Davidson also exhibited items of clothing seized from McKenzie at the time of his arrest, including a hooded sweater with a hole in the centre.
On April 10, DNA and forensic evidence took centre stage.
Forensic scientist Renata Dziak tied a DNA sample taken from the grip and slide of the murder weapon to McKenzie and compared it DNA taken from both suspects, as well as police officers involved in the pursuit. While noting she could not confirm with certainty that it matched a sample taken from McKenzie, she said that with four DNA samples found on the gun, when comparing McKenzie’s DNA it was 620 billion times more likely to be McKenzie and three unidentified people than four unidentified people.
Forensic video analyst Ron Schistad went through a list of photos of the suspected shooter, taken from Pierzchala’s body cam footage, with various photos of McKenzie, zeroing in on a broken tooth visible in the presented photos and the shooting video.
On April 11, forensic scientist Benjamin Lee took the stand to identify 13 gunshot particles found inside the front pocket of a hoodie that was retrieved from the scene of the arrest. On cross-examination, Lee testified that it’s possible for gunshot residue to be transferred between surfaces.
Forensic scientist Jennifer Plath also testified that she could neither confirm nor deny that bullet casings collected at the scene and in the woodlot where the suspects were arrested came from the Glock 19 McKenzie threw into the woods before surrendering due to limited markings.
Additionally, a statement of fact read by the prosecution revealed the gun was purchased in Arizona on June 1, 2022 and had been illegally trafficked into the country from the United States that same year.
Look to next week’s Press for further coverage of this ongoing trial.
