Of course he cant, he is a CRIMINAL!!!! Defense: Selenski accuser cant be trusted Hugo Selenskis accuser is a career criminal who cant be trusted and whose claim that Selenski murdered two people for money doesnt make sense, a defense attorney told the jury during opening statements Wednesday. Prosecutors earlier portrayed Selenski as a deceptive and ruthless criminal who takes what he wants, leaving people bound and broken in his wake. But defense attorney Bernard Brown said that is not the case at all — in fact the jury should take a hard look at Paul Weakley, a burglar and robber who implicated Selenski in a double murder only after changing his story several times. He noted Weakley has already pleaded guilty to murdering Wyoming County pharmacist Michael Kerkowski and Kerkowski’s girlfriend, Tammy Fassett of Meshoppen, who were tortured and murdered by strangulation with flex ties at Kerkowski’s Hunlock Creek home on May 3, 2002. Why would Hugo kill Michael Kerkowski? Brown said, noting Kerkowski, who had been convicted of illegally selling oxycontin, had been paying Selenski well for legal advice. Why would you kill the goose that laid the golden egg? He was already getting paid by Kerkowski. The capital murder trial of Selenski, 41, began Wednesday amid security so tight that sheriffs deputies required both his defense attorneys and prosecutors to be searched before entering the courtroom. According to the prosecution, Kerkowski saw Selenski as a guy who knew how to work the system because of his criminal past and paid him for legal services. Assistant District Attorney Jarrett Ferentino said Selenski used that money to begin buying a house on seven acres in Kingston Township equipped with a hot tub and tanning bed as well as a car, he said. Meanwhile, Selenski was plotting a way to get more money, he said. Weakley initially wasnt on board with a murder and robbery — he thought Selenski was too close to Kerkowski and the police would quickly turn to him. But as the clock began ticking on the closing of the house, Selenski had a better idea: make it look like Kerkowski skipped out on his sentencing, Ferentino said. It was widely believed that Michael Kerkowski fled, Ferentino said. It was a good plan. As Selenski was formulating his plan, Kerkowski had dinner with Fassett, his parents and children the night before the murders, Ferentino said. At the end of the night, he left as his parents gave the children a bath. I love you mom. Thanks for everything, the prosecutor quoted him as saying. Thats the last time she will ever see her son alive. Thats the last time she will ever hear his voice. Ferentino said Selenski killed Kerkowski and Fassett in a carefully devised plan that involved flex ties and duct tape, he said, pulling out a white flex tie for the jury to observe. It is more terrifying (than a knife or a gun) the way Hugo Selenski used it, Ferentino said, cinching the tie down to form a tiny loop only a few inches across. On May 3, 2002, Selenski and Weakley pulled up to Kerkowskis house, unexpectedly finding Fassett there. This is a waitress from a bagel shop with a family at home who happened to be there, Ferentino said. Tammy wasnt part of the plan, but our boys, they quickly adapt. After drinking a few beers, Selenski and Weakley bound and tortured the pair, extracting information from Kerkowski about where Selenski could find more money by choking him with flex ties and then releasing them before he died, he said. Eventually, they cinched down flex ties one last time on each of them and loaded them into Weakleys car. The bodies were buried at the property Selenski was about to purchase with the money he stole during the murders, Ferentino said. He continued shaking down Kerkowskis parents for more money until they caught on and finally demanded answers to questions only their son would know. By that time, Selenski had spent more than he ever should have had, he said. A tax return from 2002 showed Selenski had $187 in income that year. One-hundred and eighty seven dollars for a man who spent north of almost $200,000 in that time period, Ferentino said. But Brown countered that there wasnt much mystery at all — most of the money was coming from Selenskis girlfriend at the time, Christine Strom, who held one job making $45,000 per year and later another job making $55,000 per year. She was the source of money for payments on the property that cut the price to $144,000, which she covered by a mortgage from Wachovia, he said. When Weakley got out of prison, he asked for Selenskis help getting back on his feet, so Strom hired Weakley to do work on the sump pump area of the back yard that the previous owner recommended, giving Weakley access to the property, Brown said. As a result of that work, Weakley saw the relationship Selenski had with Strom and got jealous, he said. He wanted the life Hugo had, Brown said. He wanted the girlfriend who was able to provide. ... Why Hugo? Because he wanted him out of the way. Brown noted there is no forensic evidence tying Selenski to the case and that the Weakley, the prosecutions key witness, was on a crime spree in 2002, breaking into churches and other buildings, as well as stealing from his employer. One witness, he said, will testify hearing Weakley say he could put Hugo away for a long time if they just look at the well, which is exactly what happened. Weakleys story has also changed to include two other participants before he named Selenski as involved, and he has a proven record of telling police information that is simply not true, including the date the bodies were buried and that the bodies were first buried near Dallas High School. The only thing Selenski was involved in was helping Kerkowski skip out on his impending prison sentence, he said. The prosecution is slated to call its first witness after a lunch break.
Posted on: Wed, 21 Jan 2015 19:33:10 +0000
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