Dean Penney testifies for 4th day at 1st-degree murder trial in estranged wife's death

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Penney reiterates that he felt pressured by Rudy, and that he had to make up a story to get out of the situation.

"Every time he'd come up with something, I tried to make up something else to make it believable."

"I was just scared to death … kept trying to explain it away."

Penney is also asked about how he told the crime boss that when his wife fell down a set of stairs, there was a mallet next to her on the stairs.

In the interview, Rudy called Penney out on this, saying it didn’t seem likely. 

Penney said he had to work to make it make sense.

"Was that second statement a lie?" defence lawyer Mark Gruchy asked.

"A lie?" Penney responded. "Yes." 

Penney’s testimony is moving into the second of two interviews with the fake crime boss he knew as Rudy. It happened on Dec. 8, 2023, in Edmonton.

Penney was told it was to iron out the contract details for his new job as the captain of the crime boss’s yacht, but that Rudy also needed more information on Dean’s involvement in Jennifer Hillier-Penney’s death.

Penney said he didn’t expect that, and that he was scared to death that the man he knew as Rudy could harm him.

"I was trying to spin a lie to get me out of that situation on the boat… I just couldn’t remember a lot of the stuff that I was saying … because it was a fabricated story.”

At the end of his testimony on Day 3, Penney said he felt the need to make up a story to get out of the first interview.

The courtroom is open, and we’re ready to begin.

Penney backed up the claim from his lawyers during his testimony, saying he felt like he was backed into a corner and needed a way out.

"He didn’t want me to say that I had nothing to do with it. He wanted me to say what he wanted to hear," Penney said.

"All that was really going through my mind was how to make up a story that would sound like it could be true."

Jury watches 1st part of interview where Dean Penney allegedly confessed to murder

Penney's testimony on Monday centred around the fear he said he felt during the first of two recorded interviews between himself and an undercover RCMP officer masquerading as a crime boss of the organization Penney was working with. The officer's identity is protected, and he can only be referred to as Rudy.

He spoke of how he tried to tell Rudy that he had nothing to do with Hillier-Penney's death, but said Rudy kept cutting him off and trying to steer him into a confession. Penney did confess to being involved in her death during that first interview, but his defence contends he was pressured into making a false confession.

Penney has pleaded not guilty in the death and disappearance of his estranged wife, Jennifer Hillier-Penney. She's been missing since Nov. 30, 2016, and her body has never been found.

Once Penney’s testimony is complete, the Crown will cross-examine him.

The courtroom is expected to open for the day around 10 a.m. NT.

Dean Penney tells court he felt forced by sting to 'make up a story'

What was supposed to be a full day in court turned into a half-day, with Penney taking to the witness box around 2:45 p.m. NT. He has pleaded not guilty in the death of his estranged wife, Jennifer Hillier-Penney. Her body has never been found.

Much of his testimony on Monday focused on the fear Penney said he felt during the first of two recorded interviews between himself and the undercover RCMP officer masquerading as a crime boss. 

It was presented to Penney as a job interview, but also an opportunity for Penney to talk about any involvement he had in Hillier-Penney's death and disappearance. During those interviews, Penney originally denied involvement in his wife's death, but later spelled out details like how she died and where he hid her body.

Throughout the conversation, Penney said he felt it shift from interview to interrogation. That scared him, he said, as he believed he was face to face with a very powerful person who could harm him. Even though he was given multiple chances to leave, Penney said he feared what could happen if he chose to leave given what he knew about the fictitious criminal operation.

Penney spent the first portion of the conversation trying to tell the undercover officer he had nothing to do with Hillier-Penney's death. However, he said the crime boss kept cutting him off and was trying to lead Penney to say he was somehow involved.

"He didn’t want me to say that I had nothing to do with it. He wanted me to say what he wanted to hear," Penney said.

Penney said there were times when he felt backed into a corner, and that the fear he felt drove him to try and find a way out of the situation.

"All that was really going through my mind was how to make up a story that would sound like it could be true," Penney said.

His testimony will resume on Tuesday at 10 a.m. NT. It's unclear how much longer defence lawyer Mark Gruchy intends to continue his questioning of Penney, but cross-examination from the Crown is also still to come.

And that’s where Dean Penney’s testimony will end for the day. He’ll return to the witness box for a fourth day of testimony at 10 a.m. NT Tuesday.

As the conversation went on, Penney said, he continuously felt he was being backed into a corner.

"I was overcome with everything.… I didn’t know what to do. I didn’t know where to turn," Penney said.

Penney said he felt the conversation move from interview to interrogation, and told the court he felt he needed a way out.

"All that was really going through my mind was how to make up a story that would sound like it could be true."

Penney says he was trying to affirm he had nothing to do with Jennifer Hillier-Penney’s disappearance. This prompted reaction from members of her family, with some showing signs of frustration.

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