More testimony about cell towers at the second-degree murder trial of Dennis Oland with a cellular network expert testifying he was not asked to go out in Saint John with an iPhone to do actual tests, or go to check out the cell towers to make sure the specifications assumed where correct.
While being cross-examined by defence lawyer Alan Gold, Joseph Sadoun confirming his report shows in the areas of Renforth Wharf and the Bill McGuire Centre, the test calls made by Constable Stephen Davidson of the Saint John police did not connect to the predicted tower.
Richard Oland’s cell phone was the only thing missing from his investment firm office, Far End Corporation, which is where his body was found on July 7, 2011. The trial has heard that Richard Oland’s iPhone was disconnected at 4:44pm from his main computer at the office on July 6, 2011. The last communication with cell tower information received on Richard Oland’s cell phone was a text message from his mistress at 6:44pm on July 6th and the tower pinged was the Fairvale tower at 2524 Rothesay Road.
Sadoun has testified that the likelihood of a cell phone communicating with the Fairvale tower while being in the uptown area would be minimal. Defence lawyer Alan Gold bringing up the idea of so-called neighbour lists – saying that when a tower is too busy it tells a cell phone to connect to a “neighbour”. Gold saying on July 6, 2011 a user could connect with Fairvale tower if they were in the tower’s coverage area (the pink area shown on the map) or in the coverage area of another tower on the electronic neighbour list of the Fairvale tower.
Sadoun responding by saying, “yes, that could be an answer.”
The Dennis Oland trial resumes on Monday morning at 9:30 at the Saint John Law Courts.
CHSJ News reporter Laura Lyall is covering the trial and is live-tweeting the proceedings. To follow along go to the CHSJ News Twitter page or the Wave News Twitter page.
