SaskatchewanThe jury has been selected for the trial of Roderick Sutherland in Saskatoon Court of King’s Bench in Saskatoon. He is charged with manslaughter in the 2020 death of Megan Gallagher.Roderick Sutherland charged with manslaughter, unlawful confinementKendall Latimer · CBC News · Posted: Oct 06, 2025 5:01 PM EDT | Last Updated: 5 hours agoMegan Gallagher, 30, died five years ago, in September 2020. Roderick Sutherland is charged with manslaughter in her death and pleaded not guilty at the start of his trial Monday in Saskatoon Court of King’s Bench. (Brian Gallagher/Facebook)WARNING: This story contains distressing details.The Crown says it is going to call evidence that shows Megan Gallagher was confined and killed by a group of people in the garage of the house where Roderick Sutherland lived.Crown prosecutor Bill Burge made the statement during his opening remarks to the jury in Sutherland’s trial in Saskatoon Court of King’s Bench on Monday.Sutherland is charged with manslaughter, unlawful confinement and offering an indignity to human remains. He pleaded not guilty.Justice John Morrall is presiding over the trial, which is expected to last two weeks. Several of Gallagher’s family members and supporters attended the first day of the trial. Gallagher, a 30-year-old mother, disappeared more than five years ago in Saskatoon. Two years later, her body was found on the banks of the South Saskatchewan River.Gang ties allegedCourt heard on Monday that Gallagher was killed in a garage on Weldon Avenue in Saskatoon. The prosecution’s theory isn’t that Sutherland acted alone, but rather that he was involved with others who committed the unlawful acts that resulted in her death, Burge said.Burge said jurors will hear the names of Robert (Bobby) Thomas, Cheyann Peeteetuce and Summer Sky Henry throughout this trial because they were also charged in Gallagher’s death and entered guilty pleas. The jury box in a courtroom at Saskatoon Court of King’s Bench is shown in a file photo. On Monday, the jury was selected for the trial of Roderick Sutherland, who is charged with manslaughter in the 2020 death of Megan Gallagher. (Don Somers/CBC)Burge said the Crown will call evidence to show the trio showed up at the garage at the house where Sutherland was living in the early morning hours of Sept. 20, 2020, telling Sutherland they wanted to use the detached garage “to ask Megan Gallagher some questions.” Sutherland allegedly knew they were associated with or members of the Terror Squad gang. He turned the garage over to them and went into his house, according to Burge. He said evidence will show Sutherland returned to the garage multiple times as Gallagher was confined and then killed. “Roderick Sutherland told police that what was going on was bad,” said Burge. Sutherland allegedly returned and saw Gallagher tied up in a chair and then left. He returned to the garage again and witnessed Gallagher tied up in a different chair in a different location, then left again, then at some point came back to see Gallagher’s lifeless body, Burge said.Agreed facts Before court adjourned for the day on Monday, co-Crown prosecutor Jennifer Schmidt read an agreed statement of facts into the record, outlining details of the case that are not disputed by the defence.The facts piece together some of Gallagher’s last moments before she was bound and killed. According to the statement, Peeteetuce called Megan Gallagher to buy drugs at 4:30 a.m. on Sept 20, 2020.At 4:57 a.m., Megan Gallagher asked a man to buy drugs from him so she could supply them to Peeteetuce. At 5:34 a.m., Gallagher took a cab to a convenience store where she met that man, withdrew $243.14 from an ATM and then left in a cab. At 6:17 a.m., she got out of the cab on Weldon Avenue and then used her cellphone to call Cheyann Peetuce, according to the agreed facts.Gallagher didn’t respond to messages or calls to her phone after that. Burge said the Crown will call evidence to show Sutherland made arrangements with others to dispose of Gallagher’s body. However, the agreed statement of facts said he was not present when the body was moved. The trial continues on Tuesday when the Crown is expected to call its first witness. Sutherland is represented by lawyers Blaine Beaven and Alora Arnold.
Megan Gallagher was killed in Saskatoon garage, Crown tells jury as trial begins
