Pig farmer trial hears summing up

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Prosecutors in the trial of a man alleged to be Canada's worst serial killer say defence claims that someone else was responsible are "bizarre".

Robert Pickton is charged with killing 26 women, but is being tried first for the murders of six whose remains were found on his Vancouver pig farm.

Closing arguments in the 10-month trial are under way and the jury is due to begin its deliberations next week.

Mr Pickton has pleaded not guilty and the defence wrapped up on Thursday.

The prosecution began its closing arguments by attacking defence claims that other suspects in the case had been overlooked and that forensic evidence found on Mr Pickton's property did not prove he was the killer.

"Could you accept that someone else snuck on that farm with a bunch of body parts, bones... all without him knowing it?" lead prosecutor Michael Petrie asked the jury.

"My submission is you are not going to entertain that bizarre theory," he said.

"This case is about the police finding the remains of six dead human beings essentially in the accused's backyard. Common sense will tell you that is not a common event."

'Parroting'

The defence in its closing arguments this week said key prosecution witnesses had lied.

Defence lawyer Adrian Brooks said supposedly self-incriminating statements made by Mr Pickton were merely "parroting" of information the police had given him.

He also said Mr Pickton was not intelligent enough to kill so many people and conceal the crimes.

During the trial, the prosecution called 98 witnesses while 30 defence witnesses took the stand.

Most of the women Mr Pickton is accused of murdering were prostitutes and drug addicts who disappeared from Vancouver's Downtown Eastside area over more than a decade.

The current trial deals with the deaths of six women: Sereena Abotsway, Andrea Joesbury, Mona Wilson, Brenda Wolfe, Georgina Papin and Marnie Frey.

A trial date for the other 20 murder charges has not been set.