A 26-year-old Watson Lake man has pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in the death of Andy Giraudel in July 2016.

The plea was part of an agreement between Crowns Eric Marcoux and Paul Battin and Travis Byron Dennis’ lawyers, David McWhinnie and Norah Mooney. It was presented Wednesday to Yukon Supreme Court Justice Ron Veale.

Dennis appeared in court in person.

Several members of Giraudel’s family watched the proceedings over a video link from Watson Lake.

Marcoux read the agreed statement of facts.

On July 16, 2016, a man living off the Robert Campbell Highway in Watson Lake called the RCMP for assistance because his dog had unearthed human remains.

Police arrived at the scene and did not find any more remains.

Officers were able to determine that the land owner was not involved in how the remains had been placed on his property.

Police reviewed missing persons reports, to no avail. They issued a press release the following day hoping someone would come forward with information.

On July 18, 2016, Giraudel, 36, was reported missing by his family.

Less than an hour later, Dennis walked into the Watson Lake RCMP detachment. He said he thought he had killed someone based on the fact that he’d found an orange garbage bag with bloody clothes and a knife at his residence. He indicated he may know where Giraudel’s body was located, court was told.

Dennis’ brother, Troy Dennis, would later go to the detachment to tell police that his bother had told him he’d killed someone, but was uncertain. The brothers lived together.

Travis Dennis was arrested, and police searched his residence.

The next day, July 19, Dennis told police how the murder had transpired.

Dennis, Giraudel and a mutual friend had been drinking at Dennis’ residence on July 13.

Early the next morning, Giraudel and Dennis left the residence to go for walk down a trail. They brought a mickey of vodka, and Dennis had a knife. They had only slept a few hours.

The two quickly began arguing over Dennis’ allegations that Giraudel had sexually assaulted him twice in the past, court heard.

Dennis said Giraudel mocked him by telling him he’d enjoyed the alleged sexual assault, and this resulted in a shouting match. Dennis made it clear to police that he had deep hatred for Giraudel over the alleged assaults.

Dennis told police that Giraudel made a comment about Dennis’ mother’s overdose, which cause him to snap.

The comment enraged Dennis enough to take a knife and stab Giraudel 25 times in the chest and back. The wounds affected the rib cage, bilateral lungs, liver and intestines, and he died on the trail.

Dennis drank part of the mickey and walked home, says the statement of facts.

He returned to the scene of the crime later that morning to remove the body, and cut it into seven pieces.

He placed the dismembered body parts into four garbage bags and hid them throughout the wooded area surrounding the trail, court was told.

Dennis told police he initially did not remember the murder. He said the memories began coming back to him when he found the bag with the bloody clothes and when he heard about the remains found by the highway. He did not explain a cause for the memory loss.

Dennis provided information that led to police recovering Giraudel’s body and his identification through finger prints and dental records.

During the search of Dennis’ residence, police found the orange garbage bag with the bloody clothes, the knife and Giraudel’s wallet. Police also found Dennis’ finger prints.

Giraudel’s DNA was found on the knife and clothes. Dennis’ DNA was found on a pair of black track pants among the clothes.

Dennis was 23 at the time of the murder and had no prior criminal record.

When police investigated Giraudel’s disappearance, they found that he had last been seen alive on the morning of July 14, 2016 at Dennis’ residence.

After the reading of the agreed statement of facts, Veale asked Dennis if the information is accurate.

“It’s true,” Dennis said.

Veale explained that the guilty plea would mean Dennis admits that he had the intention of killing Giraudel.

That plea also means he waives all rights to a trial, and the courts would proceed directly to sentencing.

“You are going to have a sentence of life imprisonment,” Veale told the man.

The sentencing hearing will cover when Dennis will be eligible for parole, potentially between 10 and 25 years.

The court will receive a pre-sentence report and a Gladue report on Dennis to help it make the parole eligibility decision.

Veale asked Dennis if he was making this decision of his own free will and not being pressured by anyone. Dennis said he was not being pressured.

Veale asked McWhinnie about possible defences, believing there could be a reasonable use of provocation as a defence.

McWhinnie said that if this case had been in the courts prior to 2015, provocation could have been used, but Parliament has since changed the rules.

Under the new rules, Giraudel’s flaunting of the alleged sexual assault does not fit the provocation defence. If the sexual assault had occurred on the trail that day, the defence could have argued provocation.

With that, Veale accepted the plea.

McWhinnie asked for Dennis’ matter to be adjourned to Aug. 10 for the sentencing hearing.

Both he and Marcoux feel that the pre-sentence and Gladue reports will have been completed in time.

Veale told Dennis that these two reports would delve into his Aboriginal background. The reports will reveal who Dennis is as a person, and what he does.

Veale said that even if the Crown and the defence agree on the period of parole eligibility, the lawyers would still have to convince him it’s appropriate.

McWhinnie suggested that the date be flexible.

He proposed rescheduling the hearing earlier or later depending on when the reports are available.