Good evening,
As Sgt. LeBlanc mentioned, I am Supt. Darrell Beaton, the Criminal Operations Officer for the Nova Scotia RCMP.
We have invited you here tonight to update you in relation to the suspicious death of Mr.
Harley Lawrence.
As you are aware, on October 23rd, 2013, this community was rocked by the horrific circumstances surrounding the death of Harley Lawrence. In the days and weeks following his death, the family of Mr. Lawrence, the citizens of Berwick and police were all focused on finding answers.
To do this, the RCMP immediately began an investigation. Our goal from the onset was to gather the evidence that would identify the person or persons responsible for the death of Harley Lawrence.
Today, because of the support of this community and the tireless efforts of our investigative team lead by the RCMP Southwest Nova Major Crimes Unit, we are pleased to announce that we have arrested 26 year-old Daniel Wayne Surette of Berwick and 25-year-old Kyle David James Fredericks of Berwick District and charged them with first degree murder.
Today’s first degree murder charges are the result of thousands of investigative hours by our officers. We drew on all the resources required – including our local King’s County detachment, specialized RCMP units from across the province and country and the provincial crown whom we consulted throughout the investigation.
Before I pass the floor over to Insp. Chris MacNaughton, I want to acknowledge the tenacious and committed efforts of the investigation team. As well, I want to thank the community for their support.
To Harley’s family, thank you for having the confidence in the RCMP to complete a thorough investigation that brought us to today’s charges.
We hope today will be a step forward in the healing process for Harley’s family and the entire community.
I will now turn the floor over to Insp. MacNaughton.
—————————————————————————————–
Hello and good evening,
I’m Insp. Chris MacNaughton, the Officer in Charge of Kings District RCMP. Thank you for being here tonight. I echo the comments of Supt. Beaton and want to thank all of you for your patience and support.
Harley’s death was a shocking and senseless tragedy that shook our entire community. It shattered many people’s sense of safety and security and left many unanswered questions.
Throughout this investigation many of you had questions that we were not in a position to answer. As police, our responsibility is to protect the integrity of the investigation and I know at times that was hard to hear and perhaps, did not make sense – however, our focus was to arrest and charge those responsible for Harley’s death – and we accomplished that. As a result of your trust and latitude to allow our investigators to gather evidence in this case, I am both very pleased and proud to bring positive news tonight announcing charges.
Supt. Beaton referred to the countless investigative hours spent on this file. I can tell you first-hand that our officers worked day and night putting the pieces of the investigative puzzle together.
During the next phase, it will be very important for us to maintain the integrity of this investigation as the moves into the next stage of the Judiciary process.
It has been a trying time for the Lawrence family and the community as a whole. As a police officer, I have seen how tragedy can bring people together and in this case, the citizens of Berwick united.
Citizens of Berwick have always been closely connected and take pride in their sense of community. Since this tragedy we have strengthened that connection and joined forces to unite. I hope today’s announcement of charges begins the healing process for Harley’s family and for the people of Berwick.
Source: Release
