A worker from the Department of Youth Protection (DPJ) told Friday at the trial of the Granby girl's mother-in-law how she had taken care of the victim's little brother and the accused's son in the afternoon of April 29, 2019.

Virginie Cotton was informed that she had to go to two children, aged 5 and 14, for a situation deemed "urgent" at dinner time, she told the jury. When he arrived on rue Lindor, in Granby, the two minors were sitting in the back seat of a police vehicle.

“We are often the first to speak to the children, even before the police, but we have to safeguard the evidence. We cannot talk about the events, ”explained ^Ms. Cotton to the Court.

^Ms. Cotton and a colleague therefore asked the two children if they were hungry. “We offered them to go eat. We went to eat at McDonald's [au service à l'auto], ”said the DPJ worker. “We also explained to them that afterwards, after going to get food, we would go to the police station and that they would probably have to speak to investigators. »

“Given the circumstances, their reaction was still well suited to the situation. They were aware that they would be talking to the police and they were okay with that too, ”continued ^Ms. Cotton a little later in her interrogation.

At the police station, the workers and the two children had to wait for some time before the start of the first interview, according ^{to Ms.} Cotton. The 5-year-old child played with a stuffed animal and pencils that the police gave him. The accused's son had access to his cell phone for entertainment. All together, they talked about their school, their friends, the holidays, their activities, said ^Ms. Cotton.

The teenager's filmed interview lasted almost two hours. He then walked to the entrance of the police station to wait for his grandfather. "He was pacing and then after 10 minutes he told ^me he wanted to talk to the police again because he had forgotten to tell them something very important," said Ms Cotton, a practitioner with 29 years of experience.

Carl Morin, of the crimes against the person division of the Sûreté du Québec, also came to testify on Friday about the filmed interview he conducted with the son of the accused. The investigator explained that he was going to the Granby municipal police station for the first time. The two children therefore had to wait a while before starting their interviews because the police officer had to familiarize himself with the video room.

“[The teenager] didn't seem surprised to see me. He agreed to come and meet me. I felt no reluctance. Even, at the limit, I realized that he was a very mature, very intelligent young man, who understands really quickly. It was a meeting that, all in all, went really well,” explained Mr. Morin to the jury.

The investigator said he made sure no one made any promises or threats to the teenager before his second testimony. "He came of his own free will and I put it on video," said Morin.

The third week of this trial will begin on Monday with the testimony of the son of the accused, by videoconference. The videos of the children's two interviews with the police will also be shown to the jury.

The accused, 38, is suspected of having wrapped the 7-year-old victim with adhesive tape, according to the Crown's case. The trial takes place in Trois-Rivières and is broadcast in Granby, for the family, and in Montreal, for the media.