A Canadian couple who were engaged to be married, shot dead by their landlord on the front lawn of their home, have been pictured for the first time.
Police found dead 27-year-old Carissa MacDonald, who worked as an educational assistant at a local Catholic school, and her 28-year-old electrician fiancé, Aaron Stone.
They pair had been running away from the house when they were shot to death following an argument with their landlord.
The couple pair rented the basement of a home belonging to 57-year-old Terry Gerald Brekka, who lived upstairs from them.
The couple got into a dispute with Brekka, stemming from a ‘disagreement surrounding issues within the house,’ said Det. Sgt. Steve Bereziuk, of Hamilton Police’s Major Crime Unit.
Carissa MacDonald, 27, who worked as an educational assistant at a local Catholic school, and her electrician fiancé, Aaron Stone, 28, were both shot dead
Police were called to the Stoney Creek district of Hamilton, Ontario, at 5:40pm Saturday after the pair were dead on the lawn in front of the house
Evidence markers are seen on the ground at the scene of a homicide investigation which saw a couple shot to death
The engaged couple lived in the basement of this house in Stoney Creek, Hamilton, Ontario
A police officer takes photographs at the scene of a homicide investigation in the area of Jones Road and Barton Street in Hamilton, Ontario
Authorities were called to the house in the Stoney Creek district of Hamilton, Ontario, at 5:40pm on Saturday, amid reports of gunfire.
The suspect then barricading himself in before being killed in a shootout with police.
‘(They were) both hardworking people, adding to the tragedy of this event,’ he said.
Neither the couple nor Brekka was known to police, Bereziuk confirmed, which makes what happened ‘a little bit more shocking.’
Bereziuk added the murder of the young couple was deeply shocking.
‘As you can well imagine these are not people that this should happen to,’ he said.
‘They’re not involved in any level of criminality or lifestyle that may lead to an incident like this. They’re truly innocent.’
Hamilton police say the dispute between the landlord and couple it thought to have been related to a complaint about mould in their rental unit.
The couple are pictured at their home at the rear of the property
The couple had been running from their landlord Terry Brekka, 57, who had argued with the couple about mould in the basement where they lived
Aaron Stone was an apprentice electrician with the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, while Carissa MacDonald worked at the Brant Haldimand Norfolk Catholic District School Board for the past three-and-a-half years and was a Mohawk College graduate
After shooting the couple, Brekka barricaded himself inside the home, with weapons that he legally held.
Bereziuk said the police spent ‘considerable time’ trying to negotiate a ‘peaceful resolution’ with Brekka, but he opened fire on them at around 10pm and was shot dead.
The standoff ended in ‘an exchange of gunfire’ with a police officer, according to the Special Investigations Unit (SIU).
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On Monday, Det. Sgt. Steve Bereziuk told CBC News how the tenants complained about the issue sometime before their landlord shot them.
‘That’s what we’re investigating to see if that’s in fact what this was about,’ Bereziuk said. ‘I think the big question is why did this happen, a lot of people want to know that. We may never be able to answer that.
‘It’s a perfect storm of tragedy in this case because you can’t predict something like this and you can’t prevent it,’ Bereziuk went on.
‘Because nobody was on our radar, at least for the Hamilton police. It makes it difficult to understand how things can [happen], certainly with respect to a landlord-tenant dispute.’
Aaron Stone was an apprentice electrician with the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, while Carissa MacDonald worked at the Brant Haldimand Norfolk Catholic District School Board for the past three-and-a-half years and was a Mohawk College graduate.
‘Our prayers are with her family and with all individuals impacted by this tragic situation,’ said school board spokesperson Tracey Austin.
Families and staff were informed of the ‘incredible loss,’ Austin said.
A police officer walks along Jones Road in an ongoing investigation of the double homicide
Police were on scene throughout most of Sunday as they attempted to understand what happened
Hamilton police say the dispute between the landlord and couple it thought to have been related to a complaint about mould in their rental unit
A search of Brekka’s home led to the recovery of multiple legal weapons
A police officer handles evidence at the scene of a homicide investigation
Members of the Special Investigations Unit (SIU) at the scene of a homicide investigation in the area of Jones Road and Barton Street in Hamilton
Hamilton’s mayor, Andrea Horwath, expressed condolences and shared her concern about the shooting.
‘I was very saddened to hear about this senseless tragedy over the weekend, and my heart goes out to the families of the victims,’ she said in a statement.
Sandra Chaisson, a resident of more than four decades in the area of the incident, said the landlord bought the house on Jones Road from her grandparents.
Chaisson told CP24 News that Brekka lived in the house for more than 20 years having bought the property in 2003 for $115,000.
‘He was very quiet. A very quiet man. I didn’t see him much, just to wave hello, but I haven’t seen him for a long time,’ she said.
‘The tenants were in the basement, but I didn’t know them, just to see them at the mailbox kind of thing.’
Chaisson said she was watching TV around 10pm when she heard six to eight rapid shots fired.
‘It was rather scary,’ she said. ‘It’s a shock to all of us.’
Tony Greenly, a next-door neighbor described the landlord as ‘bad news’ noting how he would often stand on top of his roof, watching them.
The ‘harassment’ saw Greenly build a carport to block his view.
‘It’s like we couldn’t breathe in our own backyard,’ Greenly told CBC News.
‘I was terrified,’ Joanne Greenly, Tony’s wife added as she recalled the shooting. ‘That could’ve been us. He could’ve gotten mad enough to actually get them [the shotguns] out. I feel sorry for the young couple — so young.’
A search of Brekka’s home led to the recovery of multiple legal weapons.
