The man charged with killing a woman at a bible college Kingston, N.S., two years ago has pleaded guilty to second-degree murder. Dale Toole was initially charged with first-degree murder in the death of 55-year-old Esther Jones, but he pleaded guilty to the lesser charge in Kentville Supreme Court on Tuesday. According to the agreed statement of facts, Toole killed Jones at the Kingston Bible College on Aug. 31, 2024, and disposed of her body, which has never been found. He flew to Texas and was headed for Mexico, but was sent back to Canada and arrested. Second-degree murder carries a life sentence, with no chance of parole for 10 years. Jones reported missing in September 2024 According to the statement of facts, Jones’s sister Mary Harvey reported her missing to the RCMP on Sept. 2, 2024. Harvey told police she hadn’t heard from her sister in two days, her vehicle was missing, and she wasn’t answering her phone. The court heard Jones leased a room at the bible college, where she operated a music studio. The caretaker of the property, Brian Banks, went to the college with his daughter Jennifer around 8:40 p.m. on Sept. 2. They found two jerry cans filled with gasoline on the upper level of the building. The statement of facts says the pair looked in Jones’s studio, where they found a single sandal on the floor. They noticed a door open at the end of the hallway and, as Brian approached, he saw a person crouching down. The man stood up and was holding a wrecking bar “in a threatening manner.” The man managed to escape the college and Jennifer called 911 to report a break and enter. As they waited for police to arrive, the pair searched the college and realized three of four surveillance cameras were missing. According to the statement of the facts, the Wyze cameras connected to an app that stored still images in the cloud, so investigators were able to seize some still images from the upper hallway of the college. The remaining exterior video camera captured a white male getting into Jones’s vehicle after 10 p.m. on Aug. 31, 2024. Brian Banks told police he had also seen a truck parked near the college at 4:37 p.m. that day and had taken a photograph of the truck and licence plate. Investigators determined the truck belonged to Dale Toole. The RCMP Southwest Nova Major Crime Unit launched an investigation, which included testing the jerry cans for DNA. The statement of facts says the DNA on the jerry cans belonged to Toole. Investigators also gathered video footage from the area surrounding the college, including a home across the street. Still images from the footage showed Jones and a man in the hallway inside the college around 4:50 p.m. on Aug. 31, 2024. The man appeared to have his arm around Jones’s upper body. A reddish stain on the floor, that wasn’t seen in previous images, was seen in an image taken at 4:54 p.m. The statement of facts says the stain was swabbed for DNA, which was determined to be that of Jones. A person is seen exiting the college and leaving the area in a white truck at 5:08 p.m. The same man returns to the college at 10:22 p.m. and is seen getting inside Jones’s vehicle. Investigators later found her vehicle in Greenwood, N.S., on Sept. 4, 2024. DNA from both Jones and Toole was found on the steering wheel. The RCMP went to Toole’s home in Morden on Sept. 6, 2024. His white truck was in the driveway, but no one answered the door. They returned the next day, but Toole’s truck was no longer there. Officers tried to call him, but their calls went to voicemail. The statement of facts says Toole sold his classic car – a 1967 Ford Fairlane – to a woman in the parking lot of the casino in Moncton, N.B., on Sept. 8, 2024. The woman paid $20,000 cash and wrote a cheque for $10,000. Toole called investigators on Sept. 9, 2024 and told them he was heading to Rimouski, Que., to deliver a vehicle. He said he would be travelling along the U.S. border and turning off his phone to avoid roaming charges. He said he wouldn’t be back home until Sept. 12 or 13, 2024. Police told him they were investigating the disappearance of Esther Jones and Toole said he would contact them when he returned to Nova Scotia. Investigators seized Toole’s truck in Greenwood and executed a search warrant at his parent’s home on East Torbrook Road on Sept. 10, 2024. The statement of facts says Jones’s DNA was found inside the truck and a Wyze camera and Google Pixel cellphone were seized from a fire pit at the home. It notes Jones owned a Google Pixel phone. Toole tried to flee to Mexico On Sept. 11, Toole’s daughter told police she had received the following text message from her father: “my gas jugs and hand tools were stolen off the back of my truck, there are my prints and DNA and someone trying to set me up.” He told his daughter he was no longer in Canada and he would message her later. He also told her to delete his messages and phone number. The same day, the RCMP contacted the Canada Border Services Agency and learned Toole had left Canada from Toronto and travelled to Houston, Texas, that morning. He had a one-way ticket booked for Merida, Mexico and was still in Houston, waiting for to board his flight. U.S. authorities sent him back to Canada, where he was arrested. According to the statement of facts, Toole had one carry-on bag, which contained the following currency: Toole told investigators he didn’t know Jones personally but knew of her since they lived in a small town. The agreed statement of facts does not reveal a motive or say how Toole killed Jones. Toole is due back in Kentville Supreme Court on Oct. 16 for a status update and to set a date for sentencing. For more Nova Scotia news, visit our dedicated provincial page
