Police hope traffic camera video will help solve Winnipeg homicide
CBC News | Posted: May 2, 2019 4:59 PM | Last Updated: May 2, 2019
Sister of homicide victim Brett Cadieux doesn't believe he was targetted for money problems
Winnipeg police hope video and still images of a silver SUV will help them track down the person who shot and killed Brett Anthony Cadieux, 23, in March.
The traffic camera video — two clips, each from a different angle — shows the SUV on Ellice Avenue early on March 12. Cadieux was found shot near Ellice and Empress Street at about 1:15 a.m. that day.
"If anyone has any information about this vehicle, we would really like to speak to them," Winnipeg police Const. Rob Carver said Thursday.
Carver could share little about the investigation, saying homicide investigators won't even tell him whether they have a suspect for fear of jeopardizing the case.
While he couldn't say whether Cadieux's money difficulties are thought to be the motive for the killing, he did say investigators would definitely look at the possibility.
Cadieux was successfully sued for tens of thousands of dollars by the Bank of Nova Scotia and Karlo Trade Centre (better known as the Birchwood auto dealer).
"Especially in a situation like this, where it appears to be a targeted shooting, money's often a key motivator," Carver said.
"Typically there are only a number of motivators in a homicide. Money, personal relationships — I was going to say gangs and drugs, but ultimately that just comes down to money as well."
Cadieux's sister, Kayla Bodman, says she doesn't think her brother's financial problems led to his murder, adding most of the debt he owed was to banks.
"That's just stupid," Bodman said.
He could walk into any room and make you smile. - Kayla Bodman, sister of Brett Cadieux
However, she believes her brother knew he was in some kind of danger.
"He knew something was coming," Bodman said, noting Cadieux was staying at a hotel on Ellice Avenue the night he died.
She believes he was hiding from someone, but doesn't know whom.
Bodman says safety concerns have prevented the family from having a funeral for Cadieux.
"It was suggested to us that we don't have a funeral," she said. "It's disheartening because we don't know where our safety lies.
"It's hard to have closure, not being able to have a proper funeral because of the investigation … we haven't been able to grieve properly."
However, Bodman says, she doesn't want her brother remembered in a negative light.
She says her brother was a funny and caring man who was looking forward to becoming a father this summer.
"He was so excited to be a dad," she said. "I don't want that to be forgotten. And he was so full of charisma, you know. He could walk into any room and make you smile."
Frustration at lack of progress
She says the family is frustrated no arrests have been made in his case.
"It felt like there was a lot of momentum in the beginning, and now I feel like it's kind of dropped," she said.
Police couldn't say whether there's a gang element in this case, but homicide investigators are looking at the possibility.
However, she said, "I've never known Brett to be involved in any gangs."
Bodman says her large family — she has four other brothers and two sisters — has been through a lot of stress and heartache in recent years. They lost their father in 2012, and their mother died in 2014.
Her brother's killing was an additional shock that has taken its toll on the family.
"I just have a million questions," she said. "You wake up one morning to find out he was brutally murdered. How? Why?