Man accused of dismembering ex blames his mother for the murder

A Toronto man accused of killing his ex-girlfriend, carving up her body and scattering her remains in different locations has told a court his mother was the one who stabbed the woman to death.

Chun Qi Jiang says his mother had been angry with his on-again-off-again girlfriend Guang Hua Liu because she believed Liu had stolen jewelry from her in the past.

Jiang says when his mother, who stayed with her son from Friday to Sunday every week, found him having a meal with Liu in his home, the two women got into a confrontation which resulted in Liu grabbing a kitchen knife.

Jiang says he stepped between the two women and was struck in the head with the knife before he was able to get Liu to drop it, at which point both she and her mother left the kitchen.

Jiang says he then tried tending to the gash on his head before searching the house for his mother, whose help he wanted to deal with his wound.

It was at that point that he discovered his mother in a dark room in his basement, leaning over Liu’s bloody and lifeless body with a knife in her hand.

“I saw that she has a knife and she was striking Ms. Liu’s head,” Jiang said through a Mandarin interpreter, wiping tears from his eyes.

“At that time there was no noise. I did not hear my mother utter any noise and Ms. Liu, at least the person who was lying on the floor, did not have any sound and there was no movement.”

Jiang told his trial he didn’t initially know how to react to what he saw but eventually knelt down beside his mother and wrapped his arms around her.

“I had both her hands inside my arms and my mouth was pressed on my mother’s ear. And I said to her, ‘Mother it’s all right. I’m your son.'”

Jiang is charged with first-degree murder in the 41-year-old Liu’s death. Her body parts were discovered in Toronto and Mississauga days after she vanished in 2012.

Jiang’s latest testimony comes after he told the court on Monday that he hadn’t actually killed or dismembered Liu, although he did admit to helping dispose of her remains and lying to police.

Crown prosecutors have alleged Jiang was unhappy with Liu for apparently reconciling with her new boyfriend.

They allege Jiang killed Liu in his home before methodically carving up her body and disposing of her remains.

Liu’s foot was found in Mississauga’s Credit River on Aug. 15, triggering a massive investigation. Her head was discovered the next day in the same river, wrapped in two grocery bags.

The trial has also heard from the Crown that Liu’s head showed more that 40 “chop-like” wounds caused by a sharp-edged object.

Jiang was arrested on Aug. 26, 2012, and originally charged with second-degree murder in Liu’s death. The charge was upgraded to first-degree murder last summer.