Crown alleges businessman hired man to kill Calgary financier

A business deal gone bad led to the shooting death of a Calgary financier, the Crown told a jury on the first day of a first-degree murder trial.

Jack Beauchamp, 49, the head of a mortgage lending company, was shot six timesand found dead in his downtown office in January 2006.

Robert Deer, 54, and Mohamed Karim, 25, are both charged with first-degree murder.

Crown prosecutor Sue Kendall told the jury Monday that Beauchamp's company was fronting $1 million to Deer to build a duplex in the trendy Kensington neighbourhood. She said the deal fell through but Beauchamp still wanted his $18,000 fee.

There was a nasty exchange of e-mails and letters, the Crown alleges, andDeer hired Karim to kill Beauchamp, the court was told.

Kendall told the jury undercover police recorded Deer saying he had hired someone "to teach that businessman that he can't treat people as he had without repercussions."

The jury also watched a police video of the crime scene which shows Beauchamp slumped in a hallway outside his office, with several .22-calibre shell casings around his body.

At that point, Beauchamp's family left the courtroom. They did not speak to the media but forwarded a note that read, "Our family misses Jack dearly, and we believe it is very important to attend the trial even though it is emotionally difficult."

If found guilty, Deer and Karim could face life in prison with no chance for parole for 25 years.