Cousin, Ex-Wife Testify In Nunez Double Homicide Trial
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – Prosecutors are expected to wrap up their case against Cristian Nunez Friday.
The 38-year-old Wisconsin man is accused in the double homicide of former girlfriend Courtney Bradford, and her daughter Jasmine.
In court Thursday, jurors heard the phone call Cristian made to his ex-wife the morning he was jailed.
When Cristian checked into an El Paso hotel on Sept. 2, he first called his cousin in Denver, Maria Nunez.
On Thursday, Maria took the stand, telling jurors he was asking to use her debit card.
"Because his and his girlfriend's [wouldn't work.]" They wouldn't take his name…she had to be present," Maria said.
That same evening, 18 hours after the killings, Nunez was on his laptop.
"I observed that there was several searches conducted for New Richmond news," Shawn Demulling said.
Investigators examined the defendant's electronics. One read from a string of foul text messages exchanged with Bradford, a day before her death.
"Next text message, 'Is OK if you don't want to see me or I ruin your plans is fine.' Next text message, 'No big deal.'"
Jurors won't see a murder weapon, it was never found. Though, in his hotel room, police did find a receipt for a knife, along with an empty box.
Referencing the empty box, the prosecution asked what it was a box for.
"It is a box is for a Bear Gryllis brand Gerber knife," Brandi Hart, from the Wisconsin State Crime Lab, said.
But it was a phone call to his ex-wife that hit hardest. Telling her he was in an El Paso jail. On the call, his ex-wife asks why he is in jail and he said because he was driving Courtney's car without permission.
She stepped down, without giving the defendant a glance.
Jurors also learned that Cristian visited a money exchange website on his phone when he got to El Paso to convert dollars into 500 pesos.
The defense is expected to start presenting its case Friday.