A Langley man charged with manslaughter in the death of his wife is expected to finally go on trial later this spring, after his voir dire hearings wrap up in early March.
Obnes Regis was in New Westminster Supreme Court this week for what was scheduled to be the last part of a series of pre-trial hearings.
Regis is charged with manslaughter and interfering with human remains in the death of his wife, Naomi Onotera. The couple lived in Langley and Onotera worked as a teacher in Surrey. Persons charged with a criminal offence are considered not guilty until the charges are proven in court.
Voir dire hearings take place before a trial, and are held to determine what evidence will be admissible during the trial itself.
Between October and November 2023, Regis was in court in New West for a lengthy voir dire hearing that focused on police interactions with Regis in the two weeks following Onotera’s disappearance.
Justice Martha Devlin released a ruling in January that found that Langley RCMP had violated Regis’s rights on a couple of occasions, including while he was briefly detained in the back of a police car, and when officers entered his home to search for Onotera after her family reported she was missing.
However, Devlin also ruled that police acted correctly during the portion of their investigation that led to the discovery of human remains in the back yard of the family home, as well as during lengthy interviews that Regis voluntarily gave at the Langley RCMP headquarters.
On Sept. 13, 2021, police brought dogs to the home, and Regis had their presence explained to him, was told he could stop the search at any time, and signed a form allowing it.
During that search, officers discovered the human remains. Two days later, Regis was told he was now a suspect in the death of his wife.
READ MORE: Police discovery of human remains in B.C. murder case deemed lawful: judge
Regis’s trial is still scheduled to begin on May 13 this spring and run until June 27. Criminal trials in B.C. are often delayed and rescheduled. Although he initially opted to be tried by judge and jury, he is now expected to be tried by judge alone.
The current phase of the voir dire hearing began in January, and Regis was expected to be back in court on Thursday, March 7.