'Smoking gum' not a smoking gun, came up during summations at the trial of a man facing serious charges Thursday, including using a gun while committing a robbery.

Ray Noftall is accused of drinking, entering a friend's house, waving a gun around and demanding money. He is also accused of spitting out gum onto the floor.

Crown attorney Lynn Moore said that's an indication that Noftall was in a rage, not just someone popping by for a visit.

The people involved had known each other for 20 years.

But Noftall's lawyer, Jason Edwards, said the 'smoking gum' — as he called it — is meaningless.

Edwards pointed out the gum can't make the charges against Noftall stick because it was never tested for DNA. He said it could have been anyone's.

Following a manhunt last March, Noftall was picked up in a motel in Whitbourne. Police had been searching for him for about ten days in connection with the alleged robbery. It's a robbery that Noftall said never happened.

The Crown said a witness's 'hysterical' phone call to 911 helps corroborate the story. But Edwards said it is just a story for whatever reason concocted by the alleged victim and the witness to get Noftall.

Edwards said the witness wasn't reliable or credible. He said she was following a script, but was an actor who kept forgetting her lines — and changed her story three times. Edwards said she denied using drugs —but then said she'd take whatever she could get her hands on. He added the witness denied having a criminal record, even though she has one.

Moore said the witness might be 'unsavory', but her story corroborates the victim's.

No gun was ever found.

Justice Donald Burrage is expected to hand down his verdict next week.