State trooper points to possible weapon in John O'Keefe death – and it's not Karen Read's car

A Massachusetts State Police sergeant who played a key role in the scrutiny that led to Karen Read's original mistrial on murder charges testified Thursday that early on he explained other officers that John O'Keefe may have been hit in the face with a bar glass causing injuries to his face and head Investigators however ultimately alleged that Read struck her Boston cop boyfriend with the back of her Lexus SUV and fled the scene leaving him to die in the cold on Jan Police arrested her on hit-and-run manslaughter charges days after she identified him dead outside Fairview Road in Canton Massachusetts and prosecutors secured an indictment for second-degree murder months later Defense lawyer Alan Jackson got State Police Sgt Yuri Bukhenik to concede on Thursday that he called the diagnostic examiner's office and reported there was a possibility that O'Keefe could have been hit in the face with a cocktail glass KAREN READ'S GOOGLE TIMELINE DERAILED AGAIN AS ND EXPERT DISPUTES DEFENSE SUGGESTS At a m you called the diagnostic examiner's office to inform them that Mr O'Keefe quote was struck in the face with a cocktail glass or at least appeared to be correct Jackson requested That is in part what I advised the biological examiner's office Bukhenik began Where they are responsible for the diagnostic portion of Jackson cut him off objecting during his own line of questioning After a brief sidebar Judge Beverly Cannone advised the witness to do his best to answer the questions he was inquired KAREN READ'S VOICEMAILS TO JOHN O'KEEFE PLAYED IN MURDER TRIAL I F---ING HATE YOU Did you contact the health examiner's office at in sic the morning of January th Jackson requested Yes Bukhenik replied And did you state to them that there was a possibility that the decedent John O'Keefe was struck in the face with a cocktail glass KAREN READ TRIAL CANTON COP EXPLAINS USING LEAF BLOWER RED SOLO CUPS STOP SHOP BAG FOR EVIDENCE I don't recall my words exactly but that sounds accurate to what I might have noted the sergeant replied Jackson pressed him about what he did to secure the house a probable crime scene Nothing SIGN UP TO GET TRUE CRIME NEWSLETTERJackson also required if key spectators such as fellow Boston Police Officer Brian Albert his sister-in-law Jennifer McCabe and her husband Matt McCabe could have lied from the start about whether O'Keefe entered Albert's home at Fairview Road hours before he was discovered dead on the front lawn Of those three only Jennifer McCabe has testified as of Thursday in Read's second trial She advised jurors she saw Read's motorcycle outside the house shortly after midnight but never saw either Read or O'Keefe come inside Outside court Thursday where she was not speaking under oath Read recounted reporters in plain words that she saw him go inside FOLLOW THE FOX TRUE CRIME SQUAD ON X I saw him go in the house she declared When she was solicited if she could describe the how and when she explained no but noted she has in the past and believes special prosecutor Hank Brennan may play a clip at trial Investigators recovered a broken glass and black straw separately from the scene as was O'Keefe's missing sneaker evidence that Bukhenik explained supported investigators' ultimate theory that the victim had been struck by a motor bicycle Brennan on direct examination requested Bukhenik if there was a phrase about that in law enforcement circles GET REAL-TIME UPDATES FROM THE FOX TRUE CRIME HUB Knocked out of your shoes Bukhenik commented Another component to that theory was Read's broken taillight Brennan played Ring camera video taken from O'Keefe's driveway that proved the light was cracked when she left his house around a m on Jan Bukhenik reported he questioned Read about the broken taillight later that morning and quoted her as saying I don't know how I did it last night O'Keefe had important injuries to his face and head as well as cuts on his right arm by the time Bukhenik saw him at Good Samaritan hospital he declared Bukhenik who moved to the U S from Ukraine when he was and joined the Marine Corps after is expected to return to the witness stand Friday morning when court resumes at a m ET