HAMILTON Bermuda AP An investigator on Tuesday cast doubt on whether a knife found near the body of a Canadian teen-ager killed in July 1996 was used in the crime. Pathologist James Johnston told a jury in Bermuda that the serrated steak knife was rusty and covered with crustaceans suggesting it had been in the water near the crime scene for some time before the killing of 17-year-old Rebecca Middleton. Johnston testified as a prosecution witness during the trial of 19-year-old Justis Smith who is accused of killing Middleton along with another man Kirk Mundy. Mundy is serving five years in jail after pleading guilty to being an accessory to the crime in October 1996. Johnston also said her wounds did not look as if they were made by a serrated blade but noted the width of cuts was consistent with the width of the blade. He said Middleton was slashed 16 times and three of the cuts were fatal. Prosecutors claim Middleton a native of Belleville Ontario was raped and killed after she accepted a motorcycle ride from the two men. She was in Bermuda on vacation and was found dead near Ferry Reach. The trial continues Wednesday. APW19981201.0362.txt.body.html APW19981201.0667.txt.body.html