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Jul 03, 2023

UPDATED: Wirgau, Srebnik trial moved to January

Aug 26, 2023 ALPENA — The October trial for two men accused of murdering a pair of women in Alpena in summer 2021 has been pushed back until late January and early February. Brad Srebnik and Josh

Aug 26, 2023

ALPENA — The October trial for two men accused of murdering a pair of women in Alpena in summer 2021 has been pushed back until late January and early February.

Brad Srebnik and Josh Wirgau are charged in the murders of Brynn Bills and Abby Hill and face up to life in prison if convicted.

On Friday morning, 26th Circuit Court Judge Ed Black begrudgingly pushed the trial back to Jan. 29 to Feb. 9 after learning an expert witness, a ballistics expert expected to testify, died unexpectedly and the defense has struggled to find another who could take the stand in October.

Ballistics is the science of projectiles and firearms.

Jury selection is expected to occur earlier in January at the APlex.

The judge also learned that about 400 lines of court transcripts from the two defendants’ preliminary examination were inaudible, causing him to grant a motion by Srebnik’s defense attorney to extend the deadline to file motions from Sept. 1 until Oct. 2.

Black said he has no intent of moving the trial again and warned the defense attorneys they should have plenty of time to find a new expert witness and hammer out the deficiencies of the transcripts.

“I do not want this matter adjourned into the new year, but I don’t see any way in which I can prevent that,” Black said. “I wanted to have a trial this year to be done with the case. This new date will not be moved. I’m having that trial and there will be no more moving of the dates.”

Black said the two men will be tried at the same time, but there will be two different juries. He said the decision to have one trial for the two defendants partially boiled down to the amount of press coverage it is likely to receive and how that could make jury selection a challenge.

“The plan was, if Mr. Srebnik’s trial was adjourned, Mr. Wirgau’s trial could go forward,” Black said. “Frankly, dealing with the issue of publicity and trying to be sure we can have a jury selected and not be in a position where there might be one trial result that comes out before another trial result. I think it only makes sense to have the trials together so the juries are deliberating at the same time.”

Srebnik is charged with two counts of premeditated murder, weapons charges, and disinterment and mutilation of a body. If convicted, he faces life in prison.

Wirgau is charged with first-degree murder, disinterment and mutilation of a dead body, and being an accessory after the fact.

Both men are currently wrapping up two-year prison sentences on an unrelated weapons charge but are slated to be released in late September. They will be lodged in jail locally until the murder trials wrap up.

Srebnik is being held without bond, while Wirgau was given a $2 million bond.

Bills was reported missing in early August 2021 and her remains were eventually found buried in the backyard of Wirgau’s house. The prosecution believes Srebnik killed Bills at his home and moved the body, eventually renting an excavator to bury the body in the backyard of Wirgau’s home.

Hill, Srebnik’s girlfriend, was reported missing on Oct. 5, 2021 and her remains were found in a wooded area behind the Holcim Identity Plant on Oct. 15. The prosecution says she was killed by a single gunshot to the head.

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