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Murder trial told ads for autopsy set, surgery dissection tools on hard drive

Disturbing Internet searches in triple murder
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CALGARY — A police forensic investigator testified Tuesday he found disturbing web searches on a hard drive found on the farm of a man suspected in the deaths of a Calgary couple and their five-year-old grandson.

Douglas Garland, 57, faces three counts of first-degree murder in the disappearance of Alvin and Kathy Liknes and Nathan O'Brien.

Const. Doug Kraan said he went through the web browser history on the hard drive that had been hidden on the Garland farm.

He showed the jury hundreds of web searches that he discovered on the computer from search engines as well as ads from eBay and Kijiji.

Kraan said there were searches for a post mortem surgical autopsy set, amputation knives, veterinary instruments, a Percy amputation retractor and pages and pages of different kinds of scalpels.

He also found a Google search on the hard drive for "best gore" and "most painful torture" as well as the "25 most brutal torture techniques ever devised."

The investigator said many of the searches occurred in April 2014, months before the three victims disappeared. Another search looked for information on lack of oxygen, brain damage, and "what happens to the brain without oxygen."

Another document was an analysis of DNA degradation in a dead body.

Kraan also said there were a number of searches about items for sale at the Liknes home and a map on how to get there as well a several inquiries on both Kathy and Alvin Liknes, including on social media.

The Likneses held an estate sale in June 2014 and were moving to the Edmonton area, although they planned to spend their winters at a condo in Mexico.

Kraan testified earlier that there were photos and videos found on the hard drive. Some involved photos of men and women restrained while wearing diapers, others showed dead and dismembered bodies.

Photos of Kathy Liknes and one of her and her husband were recovered from the recycling bin.

Under cross examination Kraan said he did not find any purchase order in the search history or proof that any of the items search on eBay and Kijiji were actually purchased.

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Bill Graveland, The Canadian Press