In a recent development, Zain Xavier Wood, aged 25, was convicted of first-degree murder by a B.C. Supreme Court Justice for the fatal stabbing of a mother in Prince George, B.C., while her two children were present in 2023. Justice Michael Tammen concurred with the prosecution’s argument that Isabelle Thomas, 22 years old, was intentionally murdered at her residence in the Alpine Village townhouse complex in Prince George in a premeditated manner.
During the court proceedings, it was revealed that Wood entered the townhouse for about 35 seconds and carried out the fatal attack on the second floor, inflicting 16 stab wounds on Thomas. Justice Tammen described the assault as brutal, sustained, and deadly, leading him to conclude beyond a reasonable doubt that Wood had a specific intent to kill her.
Isabelle Thomas, a member of the Nadleh Whut’en First Nation and a lifelong resident of Prince George, worked as a dietary aide. She and Wood had a brief relationship in 2019, as confirmed by a statement of agreed facts.
At the onset of the trial, Wood initially pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder but admitted to the act of stabbing Thomas, claiming it was not his intention to cause her death. Wood alleged that he went to her residence with the intention of stealing a PlayStation 4 gaming console and resorted to violence when she startled him.
However, Justice Tammen dismissed Wood’s account as a poorly constructed fabrication to evade accountability for his actions. Wood, who was under house arrest for a prior offense and was wearing an electronic monitoring device, stated that he needed to steal the gaming console to fund his legal representation.
Moreover, Wood asserted that he was under the influence of alcohol and methamphetamine, experiencing paranoia and auditory hallucinations during the incident. Nevertheless, Justice Tammen refuted Wood’s claims of drug use and hallucinations, citing inconsistencies in the evidence presented and the absence of drug-related items in Wood’s possession.
The court also established that Wood had meticulously planned the attack on Thomas over the course of a week, dismissing his assertions of impaired mental state as a defense for manslaughter rather than premeditated murder.
Wood’s actions leading up to the murder, including prior visits to Thomas’s residence and disabling her doorbell camera, were deemed by Justice Tammen as deliberate acts to avoid detection and accountability. Consequently, the court determined that the murder of Isabelle Thomas was premeditated and deliberate, constituting first-degree murder.
A sentencing hearing for Wood is scheduled to be arranged on November 27.