William Victor Schneider, the man accused of killing Japanese exchange student Natsumi Kogawa last year tried to end his own life after confessing he'd done "something bad," his brother testified Thursday.

Police were investigating Kogawa's disappearance when the accused's brother, Warren Schneider Jr., drove to Vernon, B.C. to meet him back in September 2017.

The brother told the court that Schneider revealed the location of Kogawa's body to him, then said he planned to kill himself by overdosing on heroin. He testified that Schneider asked him to relay the information to police after he was dead.

The court heard the two sat in Polson Park drinking beer and vodka together before Schneider injected the drugs, but that they weren't strong enough to kill him – he was "ripped off," his brother said.

Even though Schneider survived, his brother testified that he went to a police station and told authorities where to look for the Japanese student.

On Sept. 28, officers found her naked body inside a suitcase that had been left on the grounds of the Gabriola House mansion in Vancouver's West End. Schneider was arrested in Vernon the same day.

During a break in Thursday's proceedings, Warren Schneider Jr. told reporters that he hasn't spoken with his brother in about a year and a half.

"It's been hard for a lot of people the last two years, not just my family but Natsumi Kogawa's family," he said.

"I'm glad he didn't kill himself. He's alive."

He also said he planned to speak with the deceased's mother, Emiko Kogawa, who has been attending trial this week. She left the courtroom in tears during a brief break Thursday.

The accused's brother testified that Schneider told him he went on three dates with Kogawa, and they had made plans to meet and have sex in a tent in Stanley Park.

In the Crown's opening remarks Monday, jurors heard that Kogawa's body was found decomposing, but not dismembered, and there was no evidence of major injuries.

Authorities were never able to determine a cause of death in the case, prosecutors said.

The court also heard that toxicology tests showed Kogawa had two prescription sedatives in her system – zopiclone and lorazepam – but that the tests were unable to determine precise levels because of her state of decomposition.

Her clothes and cellphone were never found.

The 30-year-old was in B.C. to study English at the time of her murder, and had an active social life.

With files from CTV Vancouver's Maria Weisgarber