Woman admits role in Moncton stabbing death of Kyla LaPointe

A woman who stood beside a woman bleeding to death in Moncton, didn't call for help, and drove the perpetrator away from the scene has pleaded guilty to an accessory charge.

Megan Ethel Marten, 40, of Fredericton was to be tried on a second-degree murder charge starting next month. On Friday, she pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of accessory after the fact to manslaughter and will be sentenced this spring.

An agreed statement of facts provided to a judge when she pleaded guilty offers details about the crime.

The document outlines how a group of five, including the victim Kyla LaPointe, travelled from Fredericton to Moncton to buy fentanyl. They got separated, communications broke down, and ended with the 32-year-old being stabbed in the back and left bleeding on a city street.

Marten was one of three people who faced a second-degree murder charge in connection with LaPointe's death. 

Dylan Alexander Jackson of Doaktown pleaded guilty to a manslaughter charge last fall and is scheduled to be sentenced March 11. Jackson remains in custody. 

Last fall, the Crown withdrew the charge against Dana Livingston Mundell. 

Marten's guilty plea was entered Friday during an appearance that wasn't on the court docket, which lists cases being heard in court each day. CBC News asked for a copy of the agreed statement of facts from the court and the document was provided Tuesday.

The agreed statement of facts says LaPointe and her boyfriend Brody Leblanc had lived in Moncton but moved to Fredericton for a short while where they befriended Mundell. Mundell moved into a rental property owned by Marten, and Leblanc was an acquaintance of Jackson. 

On July 10, 2023, Mundell and Marten wanted to buy fentanyl, which was available in Moncton. Mundell contacted Leblanc, who had contacts in Moncton. Marten would drive a rented car.

Shortly before leaving Fredericton, Leblanc asked to bring LaPointe. Shortly before leaving, Leblanc also asked if Jackson could join. The five planned to pool their money to buy the fentanyl, with Marten contributing $400.

Leblanc and LaPointe were dropped off near a Tim Hortons on the east end of downtown Moncton around 11 p.m. to walk a few streets over to the drug dealer's Steadman Street apartment.

The agreed facts say there were delays completing the purchase, and Marten, Mundell and Jackson began wondering what was happening. The document outlines efforts through calls and text messages to reach LaPointe and Leblanc without success.

LaPointe, who didn't have a phone, was also trying to locate the three in the car. 

Marten parked the car on Belleview Avenue, a short residential street in Moncton's east end, around 2:45 a.m.

The events that followed were recorded on a nearby store's video surveillance system. 

The document says five minutes after Marten parked the car, LaPointe walked by pushing a shopping cart without stopping. Jackson and Marten got out of the car, and Jackson ran up behind LaPointe who never turned around.

Jackson immediately stabbed her in the back with a knife and she fell to the ground. Jackson went back to the parked car, while Marten went up to LaPointe's body, where she stayed for about two minutes, sometimes kneeling down beside her for short periods. 

The document says Marten saw LaPointe was bleeding and realized Jackson had stabbed her. 

"LaPointe was still conscious when Marten was interacting with her," the document states. The document notes Marten didn't call for help or seek help from neighbours.

A neighbour called 911 at 2:53 a.m.

The agreed facts say Marten walked back to the parked car, opened its trunk and then drove the vehicle up to LaPointe. Jackson got out, retrieved the knife and got back in the car. Marten then drove away. 

The agreed facts say police arrived moments after the 911 call, finding LaPointe covered in blood and barely conscious. She was trying to move her arms, but was unable to speak. She died shortly after in an ambulance.

The facts note that shortly before the stabbing, a police officer had driven by and noticed the parked car. Because of that, police knew what vehicle to look for and pulled the car over on Wheeler Boulevard, arresting the three. 

The agreed facts say that Marten denied any involvement when interviewed by police.

Marten is scheduled to be back in court for sentencing on April 10 and 11.