deadmonton 2009 - the Strathcona County double homicide

Terrestial-bound media had to settle for less-stellar shots ....

... including the fall-back cliche of media seen covering the scene.

CBC Edmonton spoke to residents who said the acreage where the bodies were found belonged to a neighbour who lived up the road.

CBC called the home and were told the residents had no comment to offer. They had better luck with neighbour May Molofy.

She said her common-law partner thought a single woman rented the property. Though she had lived there for years, Molofy said she and her family rarely saw her.

“You never even saw people coming in and out of the yard, really,” Molofy said.

But as police descended on the area, the woman came face-to-face with a frantic man in his 30s who drove up in a truck and crossed her yard.

"He said 'I'm just going to the next property.'

"And I said 'I don't think so. This is private property.'

"And he said, 'My mom lives next door.' Before you know it there was a cop car on the backside of the property and he called him back.

"It's kind of alarming," Molofy said, adding there had never been problems with her neighbours in the past.

Tina Markwart told media a woman named Sue lived in the trailer where the woman was found. She said Sue was a good friend of a man named Barry who owned the property.

"I hope Sue and Barry are okay but that's really scary," Markwart said when she heard of the murders.

"When we were over there ... they all seemed to get along really well."

Another neighbour, Alec Babich, also told CTV of his encounter with police and Barry's wife.

"When they started mentioning a white truck stolen or whatever, well Barry – the owner of the property – has a white truck."

Babich then went to Barry's wife Judy to see what was going on.

"She was very calm ... as a matter of fact, she was playing cards with some neighbours," Babich said.

Global Edmonton reported that at least two families rented homes on the property: an unrelated adult male and an adult female, and each had adult children often visit them.

"They've been in trouble before," Babich told Global. "They've been known to joyride and that kind of stuff and interfere in the neighbourhood as far as picking up stuff that doesn't belong to them – that kind of thing."

"It's completely random," Strathcona County RCMP Cpl. Darren Anderson said. "The situation is an extreme situation we feel is an isolated one."

Anderson said investigators were now trying to determine the movements of the teens after they went missing.

"We're looking at a time frame of eight or nine hours they were missing from that facility. That is going to be a very important part of our investigation – trying to narrow down that timeline.

"[What] our investigators are most actively working on right now is that period of time they were away from Bosco until they were stopped in Edmonton."

Police said there appeared to be no connection between the teens and the homicide victims.

Dr. Gus Rozycki, Executive Director of Bosco Homes, told media what took place at the treatment facility.

"The kids were playing outside ... the staff were outside.

"Two kids were suddenly missing and once staff understood they were indeed missing they reported it immediately to the RCMP because that was part of the condition of their release.

"This is not a young offenders' facility," Rozycki stated.

"This is a child welfare facility and the kids are placed in our care. They're not incarcerated with us.

"Kids in care do leave for a whole range of reasons," he said, adding that in the vast majority of instances they are returned without incident.

“Kids don’t telegraph that they’re going to do that kind of thing."

Earlier, on May 30th at 1:30 a.m., the teens had been arrested for vandalising the New Horizons School in Ardrossan. They were charged with mischief, break and enter and possession of stolen property.

The 14-year-olds were then released back into the care of Bosco Homes, with a curfew between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m. If they left the property outside those hours they could only do so in the company of a Bosco Homes worker.

Dr. Rozycki said the facility has a ratio of one staff member for every three of the 48 kids at the centre and that there was a full staff complement working when the youths left. One former Bosco worker said the ratio at night at the unsecured facility was one for every ten "if you were lucky."

Cpl. Anderson said that due to the Youth Criminal Justice Act the two boys could not have been remanded into custody for the crimes they were charged with at the time.

Instead, they were returned to Bosco Homes at 9:30 a.m., with a court date for the vandalism charges set for July.

It was reported the two teens had a history of running away.

However, Child and Family Services spokesperson Cheryl Oxford said no details would be released that would further identify the boys, including the length of time they may have lived at Bosco Homes.

Police said the two youths were wards of the province of Alberta and lived in the group home.

The teens were then reported missing to RCMP at 5:23 p.m. on the afternoon before the homicides were discovered. The property where the bodies were found was slightly less than 10 kilometres from Bosco Homes.

Cpl. Anderson outlined police experience with youths staying at the facility.

"We do deal with what we call kids who are absent without care on a regular basis that have walked away from the Bosco Homes and they were returned usually very quickly.

"The level of crime attributed to these youth while they are absent is very, very low," Anderson said.

"There is a perception in the community, however, that these youths are causing a lot of risk while absent. Simply the reality is that the crime levels attributed to these youths while gone are very, very low.

"That area in Sherwood Park is very, very safe."

Dr. Rozycki said other children at Bosco Homes had yet to be told of the deaths and the charges laid against the two youths. He figured they would soon find out through media reports.

"It's horrible. I've lived in this community for 30 years and any loss of life is a tragedy," he said, adding that the staff were devastated.

"Well, he didn't deserve to die the way he did ... nobody does," Alec Babich told CBC Edmonton.

Babich and Boenke had known each other for 33 years. They often shared beers on Sunday afternoons.

"Any kind that was cheap," Babich said.

Boenke had last worked as a superintendant for Carlson Construction and the two men enjoyed tinkering with farm equipment.

"We got along in ways that nobody else could."

About Susan Trudel, Babich said his friend provided the woman a place to live.

"He moved that mobile home in there and gave her a place to stay. I don't think she could afford too much – she got hurt on the job a few years back."

"I don't think he was a real fighter," Babich said, sizing up his pal.

Barry had leg problems and had recently been diagnosed with cancer of the spine. The six-foot man once had a strong body developed through his life working in construction.

Those who knew the pair described them as quiet, peaceful and "wonderful."

Barry and Sue were twice-a-month regulars at Brookville's Parkway Service Station & Restaurant on nearby Highway 16.

A waitress recalled Sue favoured cheeseburgers and fries covered in gravy. Any leftovers she had were taken home feed her collection of exotic birds.

"She was wonderful," the waitress told the Edmonton Sun. "Though I think she was a little troubled sometimes."

As for Barry, he also enjoyed his fries smothered in gravy but topped them off with HP sauce. The waitress spoke of the bond between the two.

"He used to go out and help her all the time," she said. "He used to help Sue a lot with yardwork and stuff like that."

Sue once worked at the diner, but after a clash with management she left. Apparently, the burger and fries were good enough to keep her coming back.

"This shouldn't have happened," the waitress said. "I just expect to see them walking through the door at any minute."

Trudel had a daughter who was spotted attending the crime scene earlier.

She also had a son who lived with her on the property.

Barry Boenke's wife refused interviews with media.

Leroy Martin, who also lived on the acreage, happened to be in Edmonton with a friend the night of the murders. After a few too many drinks, he decided it was better to stay at his son's place than to try and return to Ardrossan.

At about 3:00 a.m. June 1st, Leroy said he got a call from police asking him about Boenke's pickup truck. By 9:30 a.m. he returned to his rural home and saw a marked police car in the driveway and Barry Boenke lying dead in the yard.

"I just said to him (the RCMP officer) you better check the trailer because there is a lady that lives in the trailer, so he walked up and could see that the glass on the door was broken and you could see her laying on the floor there," Leroy said.

It occurred to Leroy that had he come home the previous night he'd be dead too.

"I could've been one of 'em," he said.

With media in tow, Leroy and his daughter Melanie surveyed the property. Bullets seemed to have found their mark everywhere.

"I don't understand why it is they had time to break all the windows, they had time to go in here and shoot his TV with a pellet gun and had time to do all this plus that," Melanie said.

"Why kill them, why kill them at all? for what a freaking pickup truck, you can get those anywhere," Melanie added.

The bullet holes seemed to tell a tale obvious enough even for Martin to read.

"I think they had a combination, more than one, they must have had a pellet gun and they had a rifle."

Leroy's son Barry said Sue kept two guns in her trailer that she used to ward off raccoons, skunks, foxes and a dog owned by a neighbour. Barry said the guns belonged to Boenke.

He also had an idea as to what happened that night.

What likely drew the two teens to the property was that it was not fenced off. Once inside the yard, they smashed the windows out of a number of parked wrecked cars, likely looking for one that would start.

Barry said the teens perhaps then turned their attention to the two trailers, breaking into them and stealing the guns.

Sunday nights usually found Boenke and Trudel away from the property attending auctions.

"They just came back from the auction and came across these two," Barry surmised. "I think they pulled up and confronted them."

Boenke was found lying dead next to a bird enclosure outside Sue's trailer. A blood trail suggested a mortally wounded Trudel managed to make her way inside the mobile home before she died.

Many said they were shocked by how relatively normal the teenaged boys looked.

The 14-year-old accused of being an accessory after the fact stared blankly, his shaggy blond hair hanging in his eyes, chewing on his bottom lip while his lawyer spoke on his behalf.

The other teen, wearing glasses, showed no emotion as his two first-degree murder charges were read out loud.

Boenke's sister Gerlind Koesling said she was surprised by how young the teenage boys looked.

"I was expecting somebody looking rough, not little kids, that's what they looked like."

About the delay of proceedings and the one teen's plea, Koesling indicated disgust.

"I think that's a joke," she said.

"These kids had no facial expressions," Reshelle D'Aoust, supporting Susan Trudel's family, said outside court.

Trudel's son Jason Anderson was also upset.

"Not even an apology," Jason said. "You'd think if they felt any remorse they'd apologise."

Some worried that defence lawyers might exploit the boys' background as an excuse.

"There's a lot of people that have worse lives," Trudel's daughter, Jody Anderson, said.

Doran Roth, Trudel's ex-husband, agreed with the Crown's intent to seek adult sentencing if the pair were found guilty.

The role of Bosco homes also came up during post-hearing discussions, with D'Aoust saying she'd like to see some accountability from the care facility.

"I'd like to see Bosco step up, at least do some fundraising for the family," she said.

Six days after the teens were charged, news of what took place was common knowledge inside Bosco homes.

"Most of our kids by now know something horrible has happened," Gus Rozycki, Bosco's executive director, said.

Students in the group home's school, equipped with internet access computers, were "checking news stories and such and ran across it," Rozycki said.

"We try to reduce the discussion. Our kids and staff are working things through."

The thefts took place at properties in the Sherwood Park area, including a recreational vehicle storage yard, and at a group home in east Edmonton – a home one of the boys had reportedly once lived in.

Details of the break-ins were found in court documents obtained by the Edmonton Journal and the CBC.

On May 29th, a home was robbed one range road over from Boenke's property.

On May 30th, an RV, a Cadillac and 11 trailers were broken into and air pistols, ammunition, a pocket knife, bear spray, an iPod, two pairs of binoculars and a Nikon camera were stolen.

The teens were then arrested by Strathcona RCMP for vandalising the New Horizons School in Ardrossan. They were released back to Bosco Homes where they slipped away the next day.

Boenke and Trudel were murdered on June 1st. Police alleged the two teens then took Boenke's white Ford pick-up truck and broke into the east Edmonton group home, stealing a wrench that was "suitable to breaking into any place, motor vehicle, vault or safe."

Police believe the two teens later drove along Whyte Avenue, firing a pellet gun at pedestrians and other vehicles from inside the truck.

At about 2:45 a.m. on June 1st, Edmonton police pulled over the pair in connection with a dangerous driving complaint. Inside the truck, police found a pellet gun and an iPod.

“This pellet pistol could be mistaken for a firearm,” said Strathcona County RCMP Const. Wally Henry.

Police requested the public's assistance in locating the owners of any vehicles along Whyte Avenue that sustained damage as well as anyone who may have been struck by pellets. They were encouraged to call Strathcona County RCMP at 780-467-7741 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.

"After reviewing the file further and examining the evidence that is in play at this point, the Crown has determined that there is sufficient evidence to proceed with first-degree murder charges against both of the youths," Henry said.

"The first-degree murder charge – the elements of the offence that need to be met are that it's deliberate and or planned. And in that case the evidence right now supports that charge.

"To what extent each one played in the commission of the offence, that will be something that comes out in the court process," Henry said.

Both teens remained in custody and their next appearance in Sherwood Park Provincial Youth Court was set for December 8th, 2009.

RCMP advised Susan Trudel's family of the amended charges in advance of the public announcement. Contacted by the Edmonton Sun, Trudel's son Jason Anderson said he was barely affected.

"I suppose everybody's a little happier," he said, praising police efforts.

"[The charges] don't hurry it up any," Anderson said of the legal process. "It's still going to take forever."

With the holiday season looming without his mother, Jason had "no idea" what things were going to be like.

"She was a big part of Christmas," he said. "Obviously we're not spending it at mom's house this year.

"I just kind of block it out, I guess. I don't think about it."

News of the upgraded charges came one day after Bosco Homes shuttered the treatment facility the two youths fled before the homicides of Susan Trudel and Barry Boenke took place.

The last of the remaining children had already been transferred to foster care, kinship programs or group homes depending on their level of treatment and needs. The closure of the ranch also resulted in 111 staff losing their jobs.

The future of the site remains unclear. Bosco Homes director Bruce Armson said the board had yet to decide.

"Currently, we are reviewing a number of other options to serve vulnerable individuals. At this point in time, we don't have any clear direction. We are certainly wanting to engage the county, the residents and whatever other relevant ministries before we proceed," Armson said.

There is also the options of leasing the facility or selling it, he said.

"But not right now. It's our first and certainly we would like to maintain it."

The Strathcona County facility had operated for 21 years. During that time over 2,400 youths were treated at the rural operation.

"With the time of year, with the snow melt and with less foliage, things are a little easier to spot than they are in the summer and in the fall," Henry said.

"We're requesting residents, particularly in that rural area, to be a little extra vigilant when they are out in their yards or out preparing their fields.

"We're trying to do the most complete investigation we can.

"Obviously finding anything – and when I talk about anything that seems out of place, that can be clothing, duffel bags, footwear – anything that shouldn't be where it is.

Henry said he could not say what type of firearm police were looking for or whether it was used to kill the couple, admitting only that investigators were unable to find the weapon after the murders.

"It's not a matter of us not knowing where that gun was dumped. In all honesty it could be anywhere where these two youths travelled.

"Although we can't and haven't released the names of the two people charged in this offence, we believe there are people out there who know these two youths and that did have contact with them subsequent to them leaving that property."

Boenke and Trudel were murdered in the middle of a crime spree thought to be committed by the teens, including break and enters into homes, vehicle theft, and the firing of a pellet gun at pedestrians and other vehicles along Whyte Avenue.

The teens were caught after Edmonton police pulled over the pair in connection with a dangerous driving complaint.

Henry was asked if RCMP were concerned about getting a conviction without the firearm.

"It's not uncommon for matters to proceed to court without a weapon," he said.

"Ever since the day the two youths were charged, nothing's really changed since then. The grounds were in place and the standard met to pursue those charges. The investigation hasn't stopped.

"Just because charges are laid doesn't mean the file gets closed per se. It's a matter of us continuing on and gathering all the information that we can."

On August 25th, 2008 human remains were found near Township Road 542 and Range Road 225. They were identified three months later as 14-year-old Alexander Xavier Smith who had been reported missing from Edmonton streets on July 14th. His murder remains unsolved.

On June 5th, 2008 the skeletal remains of 29-year-old Shannon Maureen Collins were found in the Belvedere Heights subdivision near Range Road 231 and Township Road 514, south of Sherwood Park. Collins was last seen alive in December 2007, was reported missing in September 2008, and her remains were identified in December 2008.

The body of 21-year-old Brianna Danielle Torvalson was found February 21st, 2008 in a heavily wooded area near Township Road 534, about a kilometre west of Range Road 220.

Both Collins and Torvalson led what police believe were high-risk lifestyles. Project KARE, a joint task force including the RCMP and Edmonton police, continues to investigate both cases that remain unsolved.