According to Dennis Oland's defense, part of the "escape route" is not searched by the police

A Saint John Police Dog handler has not excavated any part of a potential "escape route" Dennis Oland's defense attorneys contend that Richard Oland's "murderer" could have been used, announced the new murder trial on Wednesday.

Retired Const. Mike Horgan testified that he had spent up to 25 minutes in the driveway behind Richard Oland's office building, located at 52 Canterbury Street, on July 7, 2011, the day the body rumored multimillionaire was discovered.

Horgan and his dog Leo have found no evidence or human smell to follow.

But he did not search the roof of a small garage in the driveway or in the area beyond because he said he could not access it with his dog.

Last week, the defense released a video for the court to show how someone could have gone out the back of the building, jumped over the garage, climb a low retaining wall in the yard from an adjacent property, turn left narrow pbadage between two buildings, opened a wooden door at the end and went out into Germain Street.

The defense argues that the back door would have been the preferred exit for a killer because it is the most clandestine.

Richard Oland's 69-year-old body was found lying face down in a large pool of blood in his blood-stained office. He had received more than 40 blows to the head, neck and hands. No weapons have ever been found.

His son, who was the last person known to see him alive at a meeting at his office the night before, was retried for second degree murder in his death.

Dennis Oland pleaded not guilty to his father's death more than seven years ago. (CBC)

A jury found Oland, 50, guilty in December 2015, but the New Brunswick Court of Appeal overturned the conviction in October 2016, citing an error in the trial judge's instructions to the jury.

On Wednesday, the defense attorney, Michael Lacy, suggested that the dog handler could have accessed the unwanted area around the garage in some other way, or ask another agent to do this part of research.

Horgan did not ask for help, but his searches in the first stretch of the escape route indicated by the defense, between the back door and the garage, revealed "nothing at all, "said the court.

Horgan and his sniffer dog also searched the city block around the office building that day, including parking lots and sidewalks, but found no evidence.

The two funeral home employees who helped remove Oland's body from his second floor office testified that the police had never told them about the back exit.

Sharlene MacDonald and Adam Holly struggled to carry the "heavy" victim onto a stretcher down a long, narrow, steep staircase at the front of the building.

The back would have been easier to maneuver because the building is built on a slope. The rear exit is almost at ground level, with only two steps, they said.

Funeral home employees Sharlene MacDonald and Adam Holly both said it would have been easier to maneuver a stretcher with Richard Oland's body through the back exit rather than down this narrow and steep staircase located at the entrance. 39, front of the building. (Exhibit)

It would also have been more discreet, Holly said.

The back door has never been tested for forensic evidence because someone opened it after discovering the body and contaminated it, according to the lawsuit.

On July 8, 2011, Horgan was summoned during his leave to search the Renforth Wharf area, where Dennis Oland told the police that he had stopped on his way home after visiting his father. .

Lacy suggested that Horgan ask him to look for a possible murder weapon, but he was only ordered to search the area for evidence.

The canine unit searched for nearly three hours. No evidence has been found.

"It was a very thorough research?" asked Lacy.

"We have covered a lot of areas," replied the officer.

Part of the Renforth Wharf area searched by Const. Mike Horgan and his dog sniff Leo. (Google Maps)

Horgan and Leo also searched the premises of the accused's home at 58 Gondola Point Rd., In Rothesay, on July 14, 2011, when police executed a search warrant.

This search took about two hours.

"It's a very large property," Horgan said.

The new trial is to resume Thursday at 9:30 am with the testimony of the head of the forensic identity section, Sgt. Mark Smith.

At the last trial, Smith spent six days at the helm.

Click here for full coverage by CBC New Brunswick of Dennis Oland's new murder trial