The trial of a Winnipeg woman accused of keeping the bodies of six infants in a storage locker began on Monday with testimony from U-Haul facility employees and a police officer who responded to a call about the remains. 2:03 The trial of a Winnipeg woman accused of keeping the bodies of six infants in a storage locker began on Monday with testimony from U-Haul facility employees and a police officer who responded to a call about the remains.

Ryan Pearson and Kristina Lekei were the first Crown witnesses to testify at the trial of Andrea Giesbrecht, 42, who faces six counts of concealing bodies. Each charge carries a maximum sentence of two years.

The judge-only trial is being heard by provincial court Judge Murray Thompson at the Winnipeg courthouse.

The remains were discovered around midday on Oct. 20, 2014, inside a storage locker Giesbrecht was renting at the time. They were in various states of decomposition, wrapped in kitchen-style garbage bags, placed in duffel bags and stored in large household containers

A photo submitted to the court by the Crown shows the outside of a storage unit rented by Andrea Giesbrecht. (CBC) McPhillips Street to conduct inventories on six lockers — including No. 1103, which at the time was being rented by Giesbrecht ​. Pearson, an executive assistant, told court he was called to the company's storage locker facility onStreet to conduct inventories on six lockers — including No. 1103, which at the time was being rented by​.

Inventories were being done because rental payments had not been made for some time, he said.

Pearson said he and two employees who entered Giesbrecht's locker with him opened a five-gallon pail apparently filled to the lid with soap.

"It seemed like something was in there. Thought something wasn't right," he testified.

"There was a smell. It was strong," Pearson said. "We got some gloves. It didn't seem right. It was sticky feeling. It seemed wet and mushy, so to speak."

'It was gross,' manager says

Lekei, who was the facility's general manager, testified that a strong "rotting smell" was coming from the container.

The employees opened all five containers inside the locker and saw "some kind of white foam-looking stuff," she said.

"Once we opened one of the blue Tupperware containers, there was bags inside of bags with a towel inside of it, with something inside the towel," Lekei told court.

Giesbrecht is accused of storing the remains of six infants concealed in household containers in a U-Haul locker. (CBC)

Lekei said the smell prompted them to call police. Pearson testified that officers arrived about 15 minutes later.

Patrol Sgt. Cory Ford, who was the first officer to arrive, testified on Monday afternoon that the caller to police stated, "There [were] garbage bags within the locker and possible body parts inside."

Ford, who was a constable at the time, said he arrived shortly after 1 p.m. and followed Pearson into Giesbrecht's storage locker.

"I could immediately smell a very strong smell. I've been to many, many death-related incidents. I could smell decay," Ford told court. "I don't want to say an acetone smell, but definitely different."

'What looked like a baby'

Ford said the locker contained "two Tupperware containers and three pails — two five-gallon and one 2½-gallon." There was a black garbage bag on top of one of the containers, he added.

The five-gallon pail was two-thirds full of a "brown substance," Ford told court.

Ford said several containers gave off a smell of decay, and some had bags that were partially filled with liquid.

Winnipeg police cordon off a U-Haul storage facility in Winnipeg where infant remains were found in October 2014. (Lindsay Tsuji/CBC) One item appeared to be full of "white crystallized substance that looked like detergent," said Ford, who added that he smelled "some sort of decomposition."

Ford said as he lifted up the bags, he would shine his flashlight into them to see what was inside.

"I was able to see a limb of what looked like a baby and a small head with hair on it," he testified.

Ford said he was then directed by his supervisor to watch surveillance video footage from the U-Haul facility dated Oct. 3, 2014, the last time Giesbrecht came in to deal with issues related to the storage locker.

Giesbrecht looked away as the video was played in court. It showed her speaking with a U-Haul employee.

Ford said he spoke with his supervisor and was shown a photograph of Giesbrecht from the Winnipeg police computer system containing pictures of people who have been arrested in the past. He said he identified her as the woman depicted in the surveillance video.

Under cross-examination, Giesbrecht's lawyer, Greg Brodsky, asked Ford if the remains "weren't hidden, they weren't disposed of … they were kept."

Ford said he does not know the mindset of the person renting the storage locker in question.

Rented locker under maiden name

Lekei testified that Giesbrecht had rented the heated second-floor unit on March 7, 2014, under her maiden name, Andrea Naworynski.

The last time Giesbrecht accessed the locker was on May 7, 2014, said Lekei, who testified that Giesbrecht had defaulted on her rental payments.

Lekei said Giesbrecht indicated that she didn't want the items inside her locker to be auctioned off, saying they belonged to her deceased father.

However, Lekei said there didn't appear to be anything personal inside the locker.

"Once the unit was opened, it looked strange inside. No household goods, there was nothing personal inside," she said.

Customers cannot store furs, expensive items, perishable items or animal carcasses in the U-Haul lockers, Lekei told court.

Pearson said he has had many sleepless nights following the discovery.

Check out our live blog below for updates from the CBC's Caroline Barghout, who is covering the trial. Warning: Some details may be graphic.

Giesbrecht's lawyer expects to present evidence in Giesbrecht's defence later this month.

Brodsky has said his case will hinge partly on the legal issues at play between a stillbirth and a miscarriage.

A lawyer for a woman charged with concealing the remains of six infants in a storage locker says her upcoming trial is likely to hinge on whether the babies were born alive 0:54

Earlier this year, Giesbrecht pleaded guilty to unrelated fraud charges.