Mich. v. Samantha Bachynski: continued news report (1)

Thursday, October 12, 2006
Bachynski avoids victim's photos
On trial for murder, she turns away from crime scene pictures of Winfield "Fred" Johnson.
George Hunter / The Detroit News
MOUNT CLEMENS -- Accused murderer Samantha Bachynski turned her head away Wednesday each time pictures of her alleged victim were shown.
Bachynski is on trial in Macomb Circuit Court for the Feb. 15 murders of New Baltimore couple Scott and Melissa Berels. She also is accused of helping her boyfriend, Patrick Selepak, kill Vienna Township resident Winfield "Fred" Johnson on Feb. 21.
Testimony about the Johnson murder is being allowed in the Berels murder case, because prosecutors alleged Selepak and Bachynski killed the Berelses as part of a crime spree.
Selepak already has pleaded guilty to all three murders, and is serving several life sentences.
On Wednesday, photos of Johnson's lifeless face were shown to the jury. Each time the pictures were shown on the large screen, and when photos of Johnson's body were handed to defense attorney Albert Markowski, Bachynski averted her eyes.
Sgt. Michael Shenk of the Shiawassee County Sheriff's Office took the stand Wednesday. He was among the officers who arrested Selepak and Bachynski on Feb. 21 while they sat in Johnson's truck in the parking lot of an Owosso hotel. A friend of Bachynski's tipped police to the couple's location.
When police searched the bed of the truck they made a gruesome discovery.
"Underneath a mattress, there was a black tarp, secured with duct tape," Shenk said.
Markowski objected to Assistant Prosecutor William Cataldo showing pictures of Johnson's face, because he said it would prejudice the jury. He was overruled.
When police frisked Bachynski after putting her in handcuffs, they found in her coat pocket a wallet containing a scrap of paper with Johnson's telephone number. Also found were several newspaper clippings about the Berelses murders.
Police found a duffel bag in the truck containing a pistol and a semiautomatic rifle. A book also was found, titled "The Serial Killer Files: The World's Most Terrifying Murders," along with blood-stained clothing.
Russell Minge, Johnson's son-in-law, testified Wednesday. He said he was driving past Johnson's house when he saw a car he didn't recognize in the driveway. Since Johnson was working at a Sunoco gas station at the time, Minge said he decided to investigate.
"Patrick Selepak came and met me at the door," Minge said. He said Selepak invited him to go to the bar later that night for drinks.
At the gas station, Minge said Johnson confirmed Selepak and Bachynski had been invited to stay in his home.
Minge said he went to the bar with Selepak and Bachynski that night. "I didn't feel worried, threatened or anything," he said. "They just seemed like friends of Fred's."