The former common-law partner of homicide victim Ben Ongera says he was a violent, jealous man who assaulted her more than 10 times during their six-year relationship, including at least twice when she was pregnant.
Christina Jibi, 26, testified on Friday at the trial of Ongera's alleged killer Joseph Kuol that she was afraid of Ongera after he got out of jail for an assault conviction in late July 2011 and was reluctant to get together again.
"I didn't want to see him right away. I was scared because of what happened," Jibi told Joan Blumer, Kuol's lawyer. She also said Ongera was always reading the Bible, quoting verses and sending her verses, but she still didn't believe he had changed in three months behind bars.
She said Ongera had a reputation for violence in the community.
The witness said she had moved out of living with Ongera in early 2011 and later began a relationship with another man named George.
It was that relationship that prompted Ongera to "attack" George at a nightclub, she said.
She said he told George he'd be killed if he had a relationship with her and that they "were both throwing punches at each other."
As well, Jibi said Ongera attacked another man with a golf club in another violent dispute.
Ironically, it was Ongera who died as a result of being struck in the carotid artery with a golf club on the early morning of Sept. 19, 2011, after being involved in a fight with Kuol, on trial for second-degree murder.
Jibi said she had been at a barbecue with some female friends and Kuol on the evening of Sept. 18, 2011, and she had arranged to speak to Ongera when she got back to an apartment building in the northeast community of Taradale early in the morning.
She said she tried to call Ongera several times on his cell phone, but there was no answer.
"I was waiting for Ben to call me, but he wasn't answering messages," she said.
When she saw police vehicle lights flashing in the window of the suite, she went to look outside and saw officers appearing to be looking for someone.
Jibi said she ran outside to the parking lot and thought she saw a handcuffed Ongera sitting down, but it turned out it was Kuol.
"Joseph said, 'look at my car, look at my car. I told your boyfriend not to mess with me,'" Jibi earlier told Crown prosecutor Andrew Barg. "I said, 'where's Ben?' He said I don't know, dead somewhere."
The witness said she then saw broken mirrors on Kuol's BMW.
She said she was later asked upstairs in a suite by police if she knew the two guys fighting downstairs, as it was serious and one was dead.
"I fell to the ground, I knew it was serious, because I saw Joseph handcuffed. I knew it had to be Ben," she said.
The trial before Court of Queen's Bench Justice Bruce Millar and jury continues.
Twitter.com/heraldcourt
No hay comentarios:
Publicar un comentario