Amandeep Kaur says, in hindsight, she should've been suspicious about the texts from her cousin.

Samandeep Jhinger was living with Kaur in Warman, Sask., in the summer of 2020. Kaur was separated from her husband Ranbir Dhull and the 23-year-old Jhinger was helping take care of Kaur's two preschool-aged kids. Jhinger had moved from Toronto to Warman two months earlier to help out.

Kaur and Dhull shared a home but arranged their schedules so that they did not see each other. Dhull and Kaul had been to court twice to deal with assault allegations.

Dhull, 44, is on trial at Court of King's Bench charged with first-degree murder in Jhinger's death.

Kaur worked at a convenience store in Warman. She took a night shift on July 1, 2020, because Jhinger had to travel to Winnipeg. The morning of Jhinger's flight, Kaur exchanged texts with a person she believed at the time to be Jhinger.

"I should've been suspicious," Kaur testified Tuesday at Dhull's judge-trial.

Kaur says now that the tone and content of the texts do not seem like her niece.

The texter told Kaur that the Winnipeg flight had been moved up. When Kaur returned home, Jhinger and her luggage were nowhere to be found, and Kaur's young children were unattended. This was not characteristic behaviour, court heard.

Ranbir Dhull worked for a Saskatoon taxi company. Prosecutor Tyla Olenchuk said that Dhull had told a fellow driver on July 2 that he had killed someone and hid the body in his basement.

Police searching the home on July 3 discovered Jhinger's body rolled up in plastic and a carpet in the basement.

The trial continues all week.

Dhull is charged with first-degree murder because Jhinger died while being unlawfully confined.