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One of two men charge in connection with a Calgary murder where the victim’s remains were found near Morley will face a jury trial in the spring of 2025.

Defence counsel Chad Haggerty appeared in Calgary Court of King’s Bench on Friday to set a three-week hearing on behalf of his client, Darren Bulldog.

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Bulldog’s preliminary inquiry was to be completed next week after the hearing was delayed to give the prosecution time to look for a missing witness.

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But in the interim a direct indictment was filed against Bulldog, sending the Calgary man directly to trial.

Haggerty told Justice Robert Hall that he has scheduled the hearing for Bulldog, who is in custody and was not brought into the courtroom, to begin April 14, 2025.

He’s charged with second-degree murder along with another man, Jason Tait, in the spring 2022 death of 22-year-old Keanan Crane.

Both Bulldog, 40, and Tait, of Edmonton, were initially charged with manslaughter in the case before the charges were upgraded to second-degree murder.

Bulldog was arrested on Feb. 10, 2023, while Tait was charged 12 days later after a warrant was issued a day earlier.

The two men were jointly charged until the Crown filed its direct indictment against Bulldog only. The preliminary inquiry to determine if there is sufficient evidence to order Tait to trial is set to resume next Thursday.

The hearing, which began last month, was adjourned by Justice Peter Barley at the request of Crown prosecutors Britta Kristensen and Stephanie Morton after witness Shane Goertz failed to appear in court.

The body of Crane was discovered near Morley, west of Calgary, on May 15, 2022, after his family reported him missing at the end of April.

Calgary police indicated they believe Crane was killed on April 7, and his body was moved outside the city.

KMartin@postmedia.com

X: @KMartinCourts

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Source link calgaryherald.com