A trial for an Onion Lake woman charged with the first-degree murder and kidnapping of Tiki Laverdiere has been postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Nikita Cook鈥檚 jury trial was scheduled to start Jan. 11, 2021, in Battleford Court of Queen鈥檚 Bench but has been tentatively rescheduled for Aug. 30, 2021.
Cook, 32, was arrested Aug. 16, 2019, and is one of 10 people charged with Laverdiere鈥檚 murder.
Laverdiere, 25, from Edmonton, was reported missing to Battlefords RCMP on May 12, 2019. She was in Saskatchewan April 27, 2019, to attend the funeral of Tristen Cook-Buckle, 20, on Thunderchild First Nation.
Laverdiere鈥檚 body was found on July 11, 2019, when RCMP were conducting a ground search in a rural area near North Battleford.
In May 2019 Battlefords RCMP said that Laverdiere was last seen on May 1, 2019, and that her last contact with her family was on May 1, 2019, via text message.
10 arrested
From July 2019 to August 2020, police arrested 10 people in Saskatchewan and Alberta for Laverdiere's murder. Nicole Cook, Soaring Eagle Whitstone, Shayla Orthner, Danita Thomas, and Jesse Sangster were charged with kidnapping, first-degree murder, improperly interfering with a body and theft of a vehicle. Nikita Sandra Cook and Charles St. Savard were charged with first-degree murder and kidnapping. Brent Checkosis, Mavis Takakenew and Samuel Takakenew were charged with accessory to murder after the fact.
Two sentenced
In May 2020, after pleading guilty, Checkosis was sentenced to seven years in prison and Mavis Takakenew was handed18 months.
Upcoming court appearances
Charles St. Savard is scheduled to appear in North Battleford Provincial Court on Jan. 11, 2021.
Samuel Takakenew is scheduled to appear in North Battleford Provincial Court on Jan. 15, 2021.
Soaring Eagle Whitstone is headed to trial in August 2022. Shayla Orthner鈥檚 trial is set for April 2022.
Trials have yet to be set for Nicole Cook and Jesse Sangster. They are on the March 2021 pretrial list at Battleford Court of Queen鈥檚 Bench.
The charges against the eight remaining co-accused haven鈥檛 been proven in court.
There is a ban on publication on the sentencing hearings for Checkosis and Takakenew until the trials of all the co-accused are finished.
