DIEPPE, N.B. — Exactly four years after a New Brunswick couple in their 70s were found dead inside their home in a crime that shook the community, the RCMP announced Thursday that a suspect has been charged.
Janson Bryan Baker, 27, was charged with two counts of first-degree murder in Moncton, N.B., provincial court for the killings of Bernard and Rose-Marie Saulnier.
The bodies of 78-year-old Bernard Saulnier and his 74-year-old wife Rose-Marie were found on Sept. 7, 2019, in their house on Amirault Street in the Moncton, N.B., suburb of Dieppe.
Staff Sgt. Jean-Marc Paré of the New Brunswick RCMP Major Crime Unit described it as "a terrible crime against two well-loved people," saying Mounties have been persistent in investigating over the past four years.
He called it an "incredibly complex" investigation, but didn't give further details, as the case is still before the courts. "We hope these charges and the ensuing legal proceedings will bring answers to their family, friends and community," he said.
Insp. Chantal Farrah acknowledged that the time it took to solve the crime led to fear and frustration in Dieppe, and she thanked residents for providing information that helped lead to Baker's arrest.
"In this case, the murder of our Dieppe residents shook up many people, who have been asking questions and also providing information in order to piece together what led to this horrific crime," she said.
Baker was already in custody pending court proceedings on several other charges.
In January 2021, he was the subject of a 19-hour manhunt that spanned two provinces after a man was wounded by gunfire near a school in a Moncton suburb. Police said at the time the victim was approached by a man who demanded he give him the bag he was carrying, and then shot a gun toward the man.
New Brunswick RCMP issued a warning about Baker hours later at 11:40 p.m., saying police were searching for an “individual reported to be carrying firearms with intent to use them.” A similar Alert Ready message was sent out in Moncton and southeastern New Brunswick.
After the suspect's abandoned vehicle was found the following morning in Amherst, N.S., just across the provincial boundary, there was a delay in issuing an alert in Nova Scotia, which prompted questions about Nova Scotia RCMP's use of their Alert Ready system. Baker was arrested by Amherst police later that day.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 7, 2023.
— By Marlo Glass in Halifax
The Canadian Press
