Murder trial witness says he lied to police about his encounter with Travis Vader

Back in 2010, William Nikolyuk said he thought of himself as Travis Vader's good friend.

So he was concerned, he said, when RCMP identified Vader that July as a person of interest in the disappearance of St. Albert couple Lyle and Marie McCann.

On Wednesday, in an Edmonton courtroom where Vader faces two counts of first-degree murder of the McCanns, Nikolyuk was grilled by the prosecutor over what he told investigators when he was questioned by RCMP back in August of 2010.

Vader on the run

Nikolyuk, a 37-year-old former meth addict, got out of jail on July 17, 2010.

He says he tried to reach Vader by telephone. Another man, Terry McColman, answered and told him Vader was hungry and on the run. McColman asked him to buy some groceries and deliver them later that night.

Nikolyuk testified earlier he bought some bread, oatmeal, peanut butter and soft drinks, then waited to hear back from McColman. At about 2 a.m., he was told to walk to the baseball diamond behind his parents' house to deliver the groceries.

According to a transcript of his interview with RCMP, Nikolyuk admitted he saw Vader walk out of the tall grass. He said Vader thanked him for the groceries and told him he was doing all right, even though he was on the run.

"I didn't do nothing to those people" - Nikolyuk claimed Vader said this to him

Nikolyuk told RCMP Vader admitted to him that "he stole the wrong vehicle at the wrong time."

The transcript continued: "He told me that should be a lesson. Don't steal vehicles because you get in this kind of trouble."

Nikolyuk said he assumed Vader was talking about the McCann's SUV. But Vader insisted that when he stole the vehicle, it was empty. He claimed Vader told him: "I didn't do nothing to those people."

Nikolyuk said he felt 'pressure' to talk to police

On the witness stand this week, Nikolyuk admitted he told RCMP all those things in the summer of 2010. But now he insists they were all lies.

Crown prosecutor Ashley Finlayson got the judge's permission to treat him as a hostile witness and cross-examine him about his statement to police.

Nikolyuk said he wasn't thinking straight the day RCMP spoke to him. He'd already been interviewed once by investigators, and they showed up unannounced that day to request a second interview.

His girlfriend had just been killed in a car crash and he was about to board a bus later that day to go to her funeral in Surrey, B.C. He told the court he was recovering from a serious case of lead poisoning and that he was a meth addict.

"I was high every day back then," he testified.

Nikolyuk said he felt pressure to tell police what they wanted to hear, or else they wouldn't let him attend his girlfriend's funeral.

"Why on earth would you say something that wasn't true that got your friend into trouble?" Finlayson asked.

"To get them off my back so I could go to the funeral," he replied. "Because as an addict, you're selfish."

Nikolyuk will be back on the witness stand Thursday to face further cross-examination by the prosecutor.

Then, he'll have to answer questions from Vader's defence lawyer.

William Nikolyuk leaves the Edmonton courthouse Wednesday after testifying at Travis Vader's trial. (CBC)