One year ago Saturday the body of 65-year-old Frederick “John” Hatch was discovered in a wooded area outside of Erin.
In the early morning of Dec. 17, 2015 firefighters responding to a small brush fire found Hatch’s body along Wellington Road 24, near the 10th line.
Hatch’s death was ruled a homicide by police, the information that led them to that conclusion has not been made public however.
Police were able to trace Hatch’s movements to the previous day at a dollar store in the Ottawa-area community of Nepean. OPP are not sure how Hatch travelled to Erin from the Ottawa area, but he was known to hitchhike.
In Aug. 2016 in an effort to garner new information the OPP launched a “moving billboard” with photos and descriptions of Hatch that would move from community to community between Erin and Nepean. OPP also used a text messaging canvass in their investigation.
The province issued a $50,000 reward for information that leads to the conviction of the person or people responsible for Hatch’s death.
Anyone with information is being urged by the OPP to contact them at 1-888-310-1122 or their nearest police authority.
