Prince George, B.C.- The trial of a member of the Prince George Fire Rescue department continues.

Benjamin Williams is charged with possession of stolen property over $5,000.

It is alleged he was in possession of a  Harbourcraft jet boat, which  disappeared from a compound in Ft. St. John in late September of  2011.

The boat’s rightful owner, Donald Lane, testified this morning in Provincial Court in Prince George.  Lane says he received the boat from his employer as a form of work bonus and  figured it would have a value of $30 to $35 thousand dollars.  Lane told court it was “in mint condition, and had less than 100 hours on it.”  He said when police returned the boat to him after having recovered it, it was in disrepair, that the ignition was missing, as were the special Harbourcraft  seats and a fish finder.  He testified the engine compartment  was ruined because the engine had not been properly drained  for winter conditions.  He ended up selling the recovered property to another man for $18 thousand dollars to be used for parts.

Williams is accused of possession  of  stolen property, but a fellow firefighter is also  facing  charges.

Jeremy Kostyshyn is facing nine counts:  6 counts of possession of property obtained by crime over $5,000 and 3 counts of trafficking in property obtained by crime over $5,000.  His initial trial, which  got underway  in June,  was declared a mistrial, when the Judge hearing the matter  discovered he was a personal friend of one of the witnesses.  That trial has been rescheduled for later this year.