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Peppino "Pep" Bassani, 85, died of blunt force trauma on March 5th, 2010.

Bassani was the surrounding Edmonton area's fourth homicide victim of the year.

Kevin Michalchuk, 38, was charged with second-degree murder and assault.

Stony Plain RCMP charged a man with second-degree murder after investigating a suspicious death on a property immediately west of Edmonton.

At approximately 11:00 a.m. on March 5th, 2010 police received a front-counter complaint of an alleged assault that occurred on a property near Township 531 and Range Road 261.

Officers went to the location and arrested a 38-year-old Peace River man in connection with the assault complaint.

While at the property, police discovered the body of a man in his 80s who was described as a long-term resident of the area.

Due to observations made at the scene, investigators did not believe the man's death to be an accident and treated it as suspicious.

Officers continued to try and determine if there was a connection between the assault complaint and the man's death.

Police said the victim of the assault was also a resident of the acreage, and that the Peace River man had some property stored there. None of the three men were related, and police were unable to say what was being stored.

Police also did not clear up whether the person who reported the assault was also the victim of the assault.

While the family of the deceased were notified, police weren't releasing his name until an autopsy had been completed.

A heavy police presence remained on the acreage over the weekend under direction of the K-Division Major Crime Unit from Edmonton. Assisting were members from the Stony Plain Detachment and General Investigation Section, Edmonton Forensic Identification Section, Edmonton Police Dog Section, Traffic and Air Services, with support of the Serious Crimes Branch Disclosure Unit – see images »

Edmonton Regional and Parkland Search and Rescue were also brought in to assist in a search of the property – see images »

"Due to the size of the property and the nature of the investigation we want to make sure that we don't leave any stone unturned," RCMP Cst. Janine Peter told media.

"We want to make sure that any evidence that is there has been collected and looked at."

When asked if police were concerned there might be more victims, Peters said, "There's nothing to lead us to believe that at this time, however we're not ruling out anything."

Those with information about the matter were asked to contact Stony Plain RCMP at 780-968-7267, Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477), or online at www.tipsubmit.com

Tips can also be text messaged. In Edmonton, text TIP250 + message and send to CRIMES (274637). In Northern Alberta, text TIP205 + message and send to CRIMES (274637).

On March 7th, RCMP announced they had charged 38-year-old Kevin Michalchuk with second-degree murder and assault.

Michalchuk remained in custody and was scheduled to appear in Stony Plain Provincial Court on March 10th.

In speaking with media from Keg River, Alberta, Laurie Michalchuk said that his son had long struggled with mental health and addiction issues and was involved in a decade-long court battle over custody of his daughter – read more »

"We've been trying to help him for so many years," Laurie said. "We pleaded with a judge once to have an evaluation done ... we've had him in five or six places over the past 10 years.

"We've gone to other sources to try and get help for him because we knew he was having problems," Laurie said.

"I took him all the way to Edmonton, I took him to Grande Prairie. He's been in AADAC a few times.

"I'm not surprised something happened with him. We know there's something wrong with him.

"We've even told police, if something doesn't get done, something's going to happen," Laurie said.

The troubled father said he felt terrible for everyone involved. ""It's a sad story, isn't it?

"I feel sorry for him. I feel sorry for the people that has been affected, if it is him," he said, hanging onto hope.

Laurie said his son often exhibited unusual behaviour, such as suddenly becoming angry for no apparent reason, resulting in criminal convictions for assault.

Kevin's mother, Jo-Ann, said her son had been living in the Edmonton area for about a year.

"I talked to Kevin on, I believe, it was either Wednesday or Thursday. He didn't sound like himself. He sounded loud and was very distressed," she said.

Laurie said Kevin was living in a travel trailer on the acreage.

There were several trailers and RVs scattered throughout the 80-acre property immediately south of Yellowhead Trail, but police refused to shed light on exactly where the accused man was staying.

"It is before the courts, so it would be inappropriate for me to comment," RCMP Cst. Janine Peter said. "All of that information I'm really not at liberty to discuss."

Laurie added his son was involved in a bitter custody dispute over his young daughter and was "out of sorts" earlier in the week.

According to judicial documents, Court of Queen's Bench Justice Joanne Veit characterised the custody and access battle as "gang warfare."

In July 2009, Veit ordered an evaluation of Michalchuk's daughter's mother because she was refusing to let Michalchuk see his daughter and may have been trying to alienate the girl from her father.

On March 9th, RCMP announced that 85-year-old Peppino Bassani had died from blunt force trauma and that their investigation into the matter was continuing.

In a news release, RCMP said they did not anticipate releasing any further information as the matter was now before the courts.

Details of the assault victim's injuries had yet to be released.

Police said Bassani was a resident of Acheson, a semi-industrial business park located between Edmonton and Stony Plain in Parkland County.

Neighbours said Bassani was often seen taking walks in the area and lived on the lot with his son and grandson.

After avoiding media in the days immediately after his death, Peppino Bassani's family broke their silence and spoke with the Edmonton Sun.

They described the 85-year-old as a fun-loving, hardworking family man with an interest all things mechanical – read more »

On March 10th, 2010 Kevin Michalchuck appeared in Stony Plain Provincial Court by way of closed-circuit television.

An application for bail was expected to be heard. But Michalchuck's defence lawyer called facts presented by the Crown "bizarre" and asked the matter be put over.

Michalchuck's next appearance was set for Arpil 7th, 2010.

It was revealed Michalchuck also faced a charge of failure to comply with a probation order. He remains in custody in the Edmonton Remand Centre.

All the information presented on this page has been compiled primarily from published media reports and should not be interpreted as having legal bearing or other prejudice against the individuals named on this web site.
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deadmonton 2010 - peppino bassani