A former City of Winnipeg building inspector is on trial this week for a second time over allegations he demanded and received bribes from business owners in exchange for overlooking alleged safety violations.
David Nikkel, 56, was first convicted by a jury in October 2004 of two breach-of-trust charges and five attempted-breach-of-trust charges. He was accused of receiving free gravel and a haircut, and trying to obtain more gravel, asphalt and a shotgun during seven incidents between March 2001 and July 2001, court heard.
Nikkel, who was fired from his $50,000-per-year job following his August 2001 arrest after 25 years of service, was given a nine-month conditional sentence.
The Manitoba Court of Appeal ruled last year that Nikkel was the victim of a poor jury charge, overturned his conviction and ordered a new trial.
Justice Barbara Hamilton said Queen's Bench Justice Colleen Suche made a serious error when she told jurors they could use evidence from one allegation to prove whether other allegations might be true. Each charge should have been viewed on its own merit, she said.
Nikkel appeared in court Thursday to start his retrial, which is being heard by a judge alone. He once again pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Nikkel has previously claimed to be the real "victim" who was an honest and reputable employee who made enemies when he handed out potentially expensive bylaw infractions to unsafe job sites.
Defence lawyer Ted Crane argued during the original trial his client was the victim of vindictive construction supervisors who had falsely accused him of bribery. Crane said Nikkel has been unable to find a new job since he was fired and has suffered a huge financial loss, along with public humiliation.
He suggested the supervisors figured they could get out of making costly upgrades to their job sites, usually involving Nikkel's request to put up fencing, if they complained about the man's conduct.
Jurors took only three hours to decide Nikkel was guilty, clearly rejecting his claim.
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