Police say they’ve received a lot of help from the public as they try to piece together Waterloo Region’s second murder of the year – but not enough that they’ve been able to identify a suspect or a motive.
Ronald Chandler was found inside a townhouse at 926 Courtland Avenue East in Kitchener on June 18, having been stabbed to death.
One woman who lives in the area told CTV News that she saw one of Chandler’s male relatives run out of the home, screaming for help, after going inside to check on him.
“The look on his face … he was petrified,” the neighbour said.
“(He) would not go back into the house until police came.”
The woman did not want her name to be published, saying she was concerned for her safety given the lack of any arrests in connection with Chandler’s death.
While little has been said publicly about the circumstances of Chandler’s death, Waterloo Regional Police Insp. Mike Haffner said Tuesday that officers were confronted with a “horrific” crime scene inside the building.
“We are still speaking with a number of people (and) gathering as many witness statements as we can,” Haffner said.
“However, at this point we’re still unsure if this was a targeted or random attack.”
What may be the biggest lead police have is a man who was seen in the area around the time Chandler’s death was reported.
The man, who was carrying a black backpack and a guitar, has been the subject of what Haffner called an “overwhelming number of tips” to police. Investigators want to identify the man so they can talk to him about his presence in the area on June 18.
“This person … is not considered at this point a suspect, but simply a witness that may be able to provide information in relation to these events,” Haffner said.
“We want to stress that we need the public’s assistance … to provide us information.”
Court records show that Chandler had multiple criminal convictions. The most serious of those convictions carries a publication ban preventing the reporting of further details about the offence.
With reporting by Nicole Lampa
