A man walked into Edmonton Police Service headquarters Sunday night claiming he’d killed his wife, leaving detectives with a homicide investigation to solve “backwards.”
“This is the opposite of what we normally deal with,” Staff Sgt. Lorne Pubantz said yesterday.
A woman’s body was found at a white two-storey home at 7328 – 164 Ave. in the upscale Mayliewan neighbourhood late Sunday.
“It might be a complicated autopsy,” Pubantz said, adding though the body was taken to the medical examiner yesterday, the cause of death, and if it’s criminal in nature have not been confirmed.
Police haven’t confirmed the name of the victim or the man in custody, but did say the pair were married.
Friends sitting outside La Dolce Vita Cafe said the couple were Eritrean and had come to Canada over 20 years ago.
“I cried when I heard,” said a man who identified himself only as Jim. He added when the husband made his daily visit to the café Saturday, he didn’t mention any trouble at home.
“He is not a killer. This guy would never kill his wife. He’s been a good friend of mine for a long time,” Jim said, adding he believes the death was an accident.
“But she’s dead,” another man said in response.
Friends of the man confirmed he’s a “very successful” self-employed gravel truck driver in his mid-50s. Police confirmed the couple’s children were taken into custody and are being treated as witnesses.
“They’re in good hands,” Pubantz said.
The group outside the café agreed the death has gripped the city’s small Eritrean community.
“It’s very, very, sad. We can’t believe it,” one man said.
