Joshua Frank admits he has a problem telling the truth.
“I’ve lied to cover stuff up for a good portion of my life,” Frank testified in a Red Deer courtroom Saturday morning.
Frank and his co-accused, Jason Klaus, are charged with three counts each of first-degree murder in the December 2013 deaths of Klaus’s family members: Gordon, Sandra and Monica Klaus.
The trial is entering the sixth week.
In his testimony this week, Frank insisted he had nothing to do with their deaths. He claims Klaus drove him to the family farm under false pretences and threatened to hurt him if he didn’t stay in the vehicle. He says Klaus then went inside the farmhouse to kill his family, shoot the dog and set the house on fire.
Court has been told Sandra, Gordon and Monica Klaus were shot and killed Dec. 8, 2013. The remains of Gordon and Monica were found in the aftermath of the farmhouse arson fire, but Sandra’s remains have never been located. (Facebook)
“I didn’t kill people,” Frank said on the witness stand Saturday. “I didn’t kill anybody. I didn’t start a fire.”
“Why didn’t you tell police what you told the court today?” his lawyer, Andrea Urquhart asked.
“I had told so many different stories, so many different lies — it just snowballed into one giant mess,” Frank replied.
‘I might need you at some point to back this story up’
Frank said he was fishing one evening in June 2014 at Huber Dam campground when Klaus texted him, saying he wanted to meet and then went out to the campground.
“Tells me to sit down at the picnic table. He has a couple of things he wants to talk about.” Frank testified.
Starting in April, Klaus became involved with a supposed crime organization, which, in reality, was an undercover RCMP operation — a Mr. Big sting.
“He starts to tell me about these new people he’s been working with and this new job. He was quite excited. Said he’d been doing repossessions,” Frank said. “These guys seem like they’re real bad asses.”
Frank said Klaus told him that he had told one of his new friends he’d hired Frank to go into the family farmhouse and kill his family for him.
On the witness stand, Frank recounted the conversation he claims happened at the campground.
“Why would you say that I did that?” Frank asked.
“He said you’ve already been through the police interviews. You’ve passed the polygraph. There should be no real worry for you. I might need you at some point to back this story up.”
Frank said he agreed to go along with the plan because he didn’t know what else to do.
Frank said while the two men sat at the picnic table, Klaus gave him an order of events to memorize from the night of the murders.
“He’s basically giving me a list of things he told them had occurred. He wanted me to get to know this list so I could back the story up,” Frank testified.
He said later in June, Klaus ordered another meeting and tested Frank on the sequence.
No emotion in murder confession
The two men faced Mr. Big in July.
Jason Klaus and Joshua Frank during a secretly videotaped conversation with undercover RCMP officer, ‘Mr. Big’ in July, 2014. (RCMP)
One of the most chilling moments of this month-long trial was viewing the secretly videotaped encounter between Frank and Mr. Big.
Frank showed no emotion when he described shooting Gordon, Sandra and Monica Klaus in the head. At some points, he was even laughing.
During cross-examination by Klaus’s lawyer, Allan Fay, he was asked why.
“I guess I’m trying to sell this,” Frank said. “Play the tough guy. Because that’s what Jason had wanted.
“I obviously didn’t kill these people so there wasn’t that emotion there. If in fact I had killed people I probably would be remorseful.”
Fay took Frank through his statements and repeated lies throughout numerous RCMP interviews.
Each time, Frank admitted he had not told Mounties the truth.
“It doesn’t take much to get you to lie, does it?” Fay asked.
Frank will be back on the witness stand Monday for further cross-examination. The trial is expected to wrap up by mid-week.