Richard Patenaude, 56, told court Friday that he had a conversation with Wise sometime after Collison’s remains were recovered from a culvert in North Dundas Township in April 2014.

“He (Wise) seemed to think that Mr. Ivan Merkley had something to do with Mr. Collison’s death,” Patnenaude told Wise’s first-degree murder trial.

Court has heard that Merkley was the manager of Chesterville’s McCloskey Hotel where Collison sometimes stayed. Merkley has testified that he gave Collison room and board in return for doing odd jobs around the hotel.

Patenaude said Wise suggested that Merkley was angry at Collison for failing to pay his rent. “Well, apparently, he (Wise) thought Mr. Merkley had a .22 and that Mr. Merkley shot Mr. Collison,” Patenaude testified.

Cross-examined by defence lawyer Ian Carter, Patenaude conceded that he previously told police a slightly different story. In his police statement, Patenaude said he heard from Wise that Merkley had threatened Collison with a gun.

“He (Wise) was kind of pointing the finger at Mr. Merkley,” Patenaude told the jury.

During his testimony earlier this week, Merkley said he did not shoot Collison and couldn’t understand why anyone would think as much. “I’m not that type of guy, eh?” said Merkley, 88. “Running a hotel, you learn to get along with people.”

Crown attorney Jason Pilon has told jurors that Wise attempted to deflect attention from himself in the aftermath of Collison’s murder.

Earlier, the transcript of a taped OPP interview with Chesterville homeowner Betty Stewart was also entered into evidence. The interview was conducted in October 2009, two moths after Collison’s disappearance. Stewart died in May 2010.

At the time of the interview, Stewart owned a home on County Road 3 that Collison often visited. Court has heard that Wise rented a trailer and garage on the same property.

In the interview, Stewart called Collison “a hard man to predict.” “He came here when he didn’t have anything to eat and he was hungry, or needed a shower, or he needed a fresh change of clothes,” Stewart said.

Stewart said Collison was “a real good carpenter” who would go on a two-day bender at the end of every month when his disability cheque arrived. He’d spend it all, she said, “on booze and women.”

A father and handyman who suffered mental health and addiction issues, Collison, 58, disappeared in late August 2009. His skeletal remains were found five years later.

Wise, 77, a former mechanic, is now on trial for first-degree murder. Pilon has told the jury that Wise considered Collison a pest and a nuisance, and shot him “execution-style.”

Court has heard that Collison was shot at least three times from behind and died from a gunshot to the back of the skull. Forensic scientists found the bullet lodged in the front of his skull, above his eyebrow.

The jury trial is the first in the province to be held during the COVID-19 pandemic. Plexiglass has been installed throughout the courtroom. Jurors sit two-metres apart in a large jury box separated by plexiglass panels.

C rown and defence lawyers are also separated by plexiglass. The judge, jurors and lawyers all enter the courtroom with masks, and remove them only when they’re seated or speaking.

Many witnesses have testified by video, which has caused a few technical hiccups. Among the challenges has been to ensure that witnesses are able to see exhibits or police statements referred to by lawyers in the course of questioning.