The body of Phoenix Sinclair, seen here in an undated photo, was discovered in 2006 on the Fisher River reserve. (Family photo)

A Winnipeg murder trial heard Tuesday that co-accused Karl McKay and Samantha Kematch talked openly about how they'd dispose of a dead body shortly after five-year-old Phoenix Sinclair mysteriously vanished.

McKay's niece Barbara Leask told jurors she didn't think much about the conversation, which occurred in the summer of 2005 but now realizes the significance.

She said they were watching the Cold Case Files program on television about a man who had been accused of murdering his wife and disposing of the body.

She said Kematch said she'd burn the body but McKay said it would be better to wrap the body in garbage bags, cover it with spices and pepper and then take it to the bush, dig a hole and bury it.

In March 2006, Phoenix's remains were found wrapped in plastic and buried near the garbage dump on the Fisher River First Nation, about 200 kilometres north of Winnipeg.

McKay eventually led police to the burial site, telling RCMP investigators how they'd sprinkled the ground with pepper hoping it would hide the scent of the body from a police dog.

The Crown alleges Phoenix died after months of abuse and neglect at the hands of the girl's mother and her common-law husband, who have pleaded not guilty to charges of first-degree murder.

With files from the Canadian Press