B.C. murder suspect to represent himself and give closing arguments

The man accused of murdering Tatjana Stefanski in rural British Columbia more than two years ago will now represent himself, including delivering closing arguments in the case.

B.C. Supreme Court Justice Bradford Smith told jurors in the second-degree murder trial of Vitali Stefanski in Kamloops that they should not “draw any negative inferences” from the development or the delays in the case.

“Members of the jury, this happens from time to time in criminal trials,” Smith said Tuesday. “You must not speculate about the reasons for this development.”

Stefanski had previously sat in the defendant’s box but was seated at the counsel table when jurors entered the courtroom on Tuesday.

The judge instructed the jury to return for what is expected to be closing arguments at the trial on Wednesday, June 24.

Stefanski, who had previously been represented by Vancouver lawyer Tony Lagemaat, pleaded not guilty last month in the killing of his ex-wife, whose body was found with numerous stab wounds off a B.C. forest road in 2024.

Stefanski testified last week that she stabbed herself in his car, and while he denied dumping her body, he said she slipped from his grasp by the road.

Stefanski testified he did everything he could to get her medical help after driving away with her from her home in Lumby, B.C., on April 13, 2024, but said he drove in the opposite direction of the nearest hospital because his car was parked in that way.

The jury heard from police and prosecutors at the trial that Stefanski confessed to killing his ex-wife when he emerged shoeless from the forest and encountered officers as his car was being towed away a day after the woman’s disappearance.

The defence had rested its case after cross-examination of Stefanski concluded last Wednesday, and closing arguments had previously been set to begin this week.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 16, 2026.

Brieanna Charlebois, The Canadian Press