Police say accused and murder victims knew each other
Quadruple homicide in Sage Hill may have involved ‘loose criminal networks’
Police have stopped short of calling it gang-related, but say “loose criminal networks” may be behind a brutal quadruple homicide, as new details emerge about one of two suspects facing murder charges.
Following a three-month investigation spanning three provinces, Calgary police have now laid charges in the deaths of Glynnis Fox, 36, Cody Pfeiffer, 25, and Tiffany Ear, 39, who were found dead in a burning car in Sage Hill on July 10, and Hanock Afowerk, 26, who was found two days later near Highway 22 and Highway 8.
Yu Chieh Liao, who also goes by Diana Liao, and Tewodros Mutugeta Kebede have each been charged with one count of firstdegree murder in Afowerk’s death.
The two also face three counts each of accessory after the fact to murder in the deaths of Fox, Pfeiffer and Ear.
A source told Postmedia that Kebede “has skirted around the edges of other gangs” and is known to be a part of a group of individuals allegedly involved in gun and drug trafficking in Scarborough, Ont.
Kebede was in custody in Toronto until very recently on unrelated charges, including drug trafficking, as well as threatening and intimidation of a Crown witness. He is scheduled to appear in a Toronto court on some of those charges Monday.
At a Calgary police news conference Wednesday, Acting Insp. Paul Wozney confirmed that investigators are still looking for more suspects in the quadruple homicide.
“The investigation is ongoing (and) we believe that there are additional people involved,” Wozney said. He also acknowledged that some investigative theories have shifted in the last three months.
“We are now of the belief, based on the corroboration of records, interviews and other police techniques, that these people are all known to one another,” Wozney said.
Police were careful not to repeat, as they had previously, that some of the victims may have simply “been in the wrong place at the wrong time.”
“All six of these people — the four victims and the two accused — were known to one another,” Wozney said. “The exact nature of those roles, I can’t comment on at this particular time.”
Wozney declined to confirm if the murders were gang-related Wednesday, but said there are “loose criminal networks” involved.
However, he did thank the guns and gangs unit of the Toronto Police Service for helping them to “push this investigation forward.”
Both Liao, 24, and Kebede, 25, appeared separately in provincial court Wednesday and had their cases adjourned to Nov. 2.
Calgary police continue to seek more information from the public. “If you’re scared, if you feel intimidated, we would be able to provide you with assistance,” said Wozney.