Figliola murder trial into second day of deliberation

The jury in the Figliola murder trial is in its second day of deliberations. Maria Figliola is accused of hiring a hitman to kill her husband Frank in 2001.

This trial has been ongoing since March, but it has had many stops and starts. It’s been a long time since the jury has heard much of the evidence. They started deliberations yesterday just after 5 pm, and have been at it all day, but there are more than 200 exhibits and the jurors will likely want to go through them to sort out the facts.

The crown says Maria Figliola had her husband killed because she coveted his money and he was about to leave her. She had been having a cocaine-fueled affair with a younger man she met online. She told co-workers she could easily get rid of Frank, and spoke of three scenarios, including having him ambushed during a walk.

Frank Figliola was beaten to death on a path near Millen Road in Stoney Creek, probably with a pool cue. Maria Figliola received nearly 250 thousand dollars in benefits and insurance after Frank’s death, and she spent it within two years. Her boyfriend got a mercedes, Daniele Di Trapani, the alleged hit man, got tens of thousands from her, through an elaborate, deceptive bank transfer under other names. Maria’s best friend Teresa also got more than 20 thousand dollars. She called Daniel Di Trapani twice the night of the murder.

The defence, meanwhile, says Frank Figliola got himself killed because he was heavily involved in gambling, including illegal gambling, and the beating was probably supposed to be a warning but accidentally ended up fatal. They say Maria Figliola lied to police about several things, because she wanted to hide her affair and her cocaine use, not because she was involved in murder. They say police manipulated the witnesses and scared them into agreeing to testify about the version of events police had concocted.