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Name: Robert Wagner
Age: 31
Sex: Male
Date of Death: Between afternoon Jan 21, 1991, to noon January 22, 1991
Manner of Death: Homicide
Location: In his apartment, unit 320, 142 Woodside Avenue, Cambridge
Cause of Death: Stabbing
Copied Article:
ONTARIO COLD CASE: Trail to Robert Wagner's killer evaporated in 1999
'They were out to get him, and they got him'
Bill Doucet
Cambridge Times
Friday, March 1, 2019
Robert Wagner predicted his demise.
The 31-year-old Cambridge resident died of multiple stab wounds, in his apartment, Unit 320, at 142 Woodside Ave., and was found on Jan. 22, 1991. Police believe he died sometime between late afternoon on Jan. 21 and noon on Jan. 22. No weapon was ever recovered.
A friend found him when checking on his well-being after Wagner failed to show up for work as a welder at Babcock & Wilcox and didn’t answer his phone.
The funeral was closed-casket, due to the severity of the crime.
Those are the facts.
But just prior to Christmas 1990, Robert Wagner, or Robbie as his family called him, confided in his late brother-in-law, Roy Bartlett, telling him he would be dead in three weeks, according to Wagner’s sister, Phyllis Bartlett. He didn’t explain why.
“They were out to get him, and they got him,” said Phyllis, who still resides in Brantford, the Wagners' hometown.
With few leads early in the investigation, police revealed, three months after his death, that Wagner was a small-time drug dealer, selling “small amounts” of hashish and cocaine, then-detective Howie Fiddler told the media. They believe he was likely murdered by one of his customers.
Although Phyllis agrees with Waterloo Region police’s assessment, she said they didn’t go down the rabbit hole far enough with Wagner's second career. She said he was “really deep” into the Cambridge drug scene, more than police reported, but downplayed his involvement to spare their mother Marilla, who was constantly pushing the police to find Wagner’s killer.
“I do really think it was a hit,” she said.
Related content
ONTARIO COLD CASE: Family still searching for closure 31 years later
“He was telling Roy that he was tripping on other people’s toes, doing something that he shouldn't be. That’s why he was telling Roy he was going to be dead soon and all that stuff. And it’s funny, because he gave Roy his car. He had a Lincoln Town Car.”
Roy eventually sold the car to a pizza-shop owner he was delivering for and, when the car was scrapped, they found drugs hidden in the wheels.
With nothing new to go on, police had to abandon the case in the summer of 1991, with a then-record of 11 homicides in the region that kept them busy. Two detectives were put back on the case full time in 1992 but were really only able to eliminate suspects among Wagner’s co-workers, friends and customers.
The theory had been drawn that Wagner was murdered by a local resident who was a customer or someone he was doing drugs with at the time of his death. Phyllis said he was “heavy” into drugs, something his parents were reluctant to believe.
The case went stale until 1999 — the rise in homicides in the region meant police could work only sporadically on the case — when it was reopened with some “new information,” according to one of two detectives put on the case full time, Stefan Eszes. Police Staff Sgt. Peter Osinga also said, prior to reopening the case, they still had some suspects from 1991 who hadn’t been eliminated as possible killers.
To urge the public to come forward with information leading to the arrest and conviction of Wagner's killer, police offered a $10,000 reward. The money sparked a lead that more than one person may have killed Wagner.
Police said they should have done more in the case.
Phyllis agreed.
“They more or less brushed us off,” she said.
“You really don’t want to blame the police, but it seemed like after six months no one was doing anything. That's all mom and dad wanted to know, is if they caught the guy or what’s going on.”
Wagner and Phyllis's sister Brenda Kants, who now lives in Amherst, N.S., also believes police could have been more diligent in their investigation.
“Some of us blame the police for not doing enough or were not long enough on it,” Kants said.
“It’s just a question of why, and that’s something that will never be answered.
“It’s been so long, and honestly, it’s Cambridge, and people talk. I’m thinking people know something and someone’s hiding it.”
Continued work on the case revealed more than one person may have killed Wagner. Kants, who is eight years older than Wagner, remembers three possible suspects being mentioned in talks with police 20 years ago.
Marilla, at the time, said police told her that only her son’s DNA was found at the scene. Police refused to release to the media if there was DNA evidence.
Current Waterloo Region police Insp. Mark Crowell said there is still a possibility something could come of the specimens if the case is reopened in the future.
“I can't speak to the specific forensic evidence in the case … but I can say that all unsolved homicide investigations undergo recurring review and reprioritization based on available information, evidence and resources,” he said.
“As a variety of technologies and databases evolve, we continually assess the feasibility of renewed analysis of forensic evidence in unresolved cases. This work often occurs in co-ordination with the Ontario Centre of Forensic Sciences.”
To help breathe new life into the case back in 1999, Eszes and partner then-Det.-Const. Shirley Hilton had specially trained officers in the OPP’s behavioural science’s division create a killer’s profile, which had proved accurate in other cases.
The profile, based on crime scene photos, as well as police reports about the homicide, suggested the killer had a history of imprisonment, was of average intelligence, was street smart, manipulative, deceptive, in a relationship filled with strife and was violent. It was also believed he had an older-model car that was in poor condition.
The latter trait coincided with information Marilla told media she received from a psychic and clairvoyant, who said a brown or dark-coloured car, either a Camaro or Firebird, was involved and there was a woman connected in the murder. The woman had two children and was very disturbed and needed psychiatric help.
Marilla’s granddaughter, Molly Bartlett, said her grandmother had a strong belief in using alternative means of investigating her son’s death. She once used a Ouija board with Molly, about 15 years ago, and they contacted Wagner. He told them he was OK and gave the initials B.J., which they believed had some importance in his murder.
“I’ll never forget because it was a cool thing when my nana did it,” Molly said.
“I believe (B.J.) knows what happened. I was told he was relocated in B.C.”
Whether a B.J. is involved or not, Phyllis thinks people close to Wagner know more than they are saying.
“We ran into Robert’s friend at a restaurant once, and he wouldn’t even talk to us. He just got up and ran, so he knows more than anything, and we can’t find him,” she said.
That’s where the case hit a wall.
Staff Sgt. Brent Thomlison told media, upon his retirement in 2013, that it was the one case during his 31-year police career that left him with regret. He was one of the original investigators on the case.
Twelve years prior to leaving the force, he told the Cambridge Reporter, “This has been with me a long time, but it is solvable.
“We have identified persons of interest in this case. What we have always needed is information. Someone out there knows something, and what we need is that person to come forward and tell us what they know.”
Thomlison was hoping to have some closure for Marilla and husband George. George never had his peace; he passed away in 1997, before the case was reopened. Marilla died in 2013, two months after Thomlison retired.
“Both mom and dad had hoped to get some sort of closure, but, unfortunately, that didn’t happen,” Kants said, adding that not seeing her parents get answers was more heartbreaking than her own need for putting her brother’s murder to bed.
“We all sort of wished it would have given them peace of mind. It’s heartbreaking for any parent to lose a child and to lose them in that way.
“You watch all these crime stories, and you hear about them and how it affects other people, but you never think it will come to you and into your family.”
Talking about her brother, though almost 30 years passed, brings up old feelings usually reserved for birthdays and holidays, when the family was most likely to get together. Some of the feelings she has aren’t all pleasant.
“I’m thinking, whoever has done it got their just rewards — karma.”
Although Wagner had his demons, she remembers her brother as a quiet person who kept to himself, but was happy, and regularly visited his parents on weekends in Brantford. Marilla would often cook him his favourite meal, chili. He also frequently called his mother just to say “Hi.”
He also had a good-paying, full-time job.
“We all miss him,” Kants said.
“He’s gone. You keep him close to your heart, and that’s all you can do. You can’t dwell on the fact of what kind of life he could have had. Every year it gets older, and you wonder, 'What would he have been doing at that age?' But it wasn’t to be. His life was cut short.”
Approaching 28 years since Wagner’s murder, Kants said she still remains slightly hopeful.
“I don’t know. If someone can take any interest and say it’s worthwhile.
“If it happens, it happens, for us who are still remaining to get that closure.”
Phyllis hasn’t found peace, either and believes they aren’t any closer to finding Wagner’s killer.
“It’s been over 20 years, and some of these crimes, they do figure out who’s done it and that, but it seems like they’re not doing anything anymore,” said Phyllis, who remembers her brother as a mischievous kid and someone, when he got older, who became a loner but dreamed of being rich.
“(Thomlison) is retired, but do you think they are going to pass it on to somebody else to keep these cold cases going?”
While nothing new has happened in the investigation since 1999, Crowell said, as in any cold case, the service’s major crime unit would “quickly move it to the top of the priority list” if new information came to light.
“Although the WRPS major crime unit carries a busy caseload of current/recent homicide investigations, our service always has the ability to supplement the unit's staffing with investigative resources from other areas, if required,” he said.
“For example, we may bring in additional resources from our criminal investigations branch, who already possess the required skills, training and experience to assist with these complex homicide investigations.”
Anyone with information is asked to call police at 519-570-9777 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.
Link:
ONTARIO COLD CASE: Trail to Robert Wagner's killer evaporated in 1999
Age: 31
Sex: Male
Date of Death: Between afternoon Jan 21, 1991, to noon January 22, 1991
Manner of Death: Homicide
Location: In his apartment, unit 320, 142 Woodside Avenue, Cambridge
Cause of Death: Stabbing
Copied Article:
ONTARIO COLD CASE: Trail to Robert Wagner's killer evaporated in 1999
'They were out to get him, and they got him'
Bill Doucet
Cambridge Times
Friday, March 1, 2019
Robert Wagner predicted his demise.
The 31-year-old Cambridge resident died of multiple stab wounds, in his apartment, Unit 320, at 142 Woodside Ave., and was found on Jan. 22, 1991. Police believe he died sometime between late afternoon on Jan. 21 and noon on Jan. 22. No weapon was ever recovered.
A friend found him when checking on his well-being after Wagner failed to show up for work as a welder at Babcock & Wilcox and didn’t answer his phone.
The funeral was closed-casket, due to the severity of the crime.
Those are the facts.
But just prior to Christmas 1990, Robert Wagner, or Robbie as his family called him, confided in his late brother-in-law, Roy Bartlett, telling him he would be dead in three weeks, according to Wagner’s sister, Phyllis Bartlett. He didn’t explain why.
“They were out to get him, and they got him,” said Phyllis, who still resides in Brantford, the Wagners' hometown.
With few leads early in the investigation, police revealed, three months after his death, that Wagner was a small-time drug dealer, selling “small amounts” of hashish and cocaine, then-detective Howie Fiddler told the media. They believe he was likely murdered by one of his customers.
Although Phyllis agrees with Waterloo Region police’s assessment, she said they didn’t go down the rabbit hole far enough with Wagner's second career. She said he was “really deep” into the Cambridge drug scene, more than police reported, but downplayed his involvement to spare their mother Marilla, who was constantly pushing the police to find Wagner’s killer.
“I do really think it was a hit,” she said.
Related content
ONTARIO COLD CASE: Family still searching for closure 31 years later
“He was telling Roy that he was tripping on other people’s toes, doing something that he shouldn't be. That’s why he was telling Roy he was going to be dead soon and all that stuff. And it’s funny, because he gave Roy his car. He had a Lincoln Town Car.”
Roy eventually sold the car to a pizza-shop owner he was delivering for and, when the car was scrapped, they found drugs hidden in the wheels.
With nothing new to go on, police had to abandon the case in the summer of 1991, with a then-record of 11 homicides in the region that kept them busy. Two detectives were put back on the case full time in 1992 but were really only able to eliminate suspects among Wagner’s co-workers, friends and customers.
The theory had been drawn that Wagner was murdered by a local resident who was a customer or someone he was doing drugs with at the time of his death. Phyllis said he was “heavy” into drugs, something his parents were reluctant to believe.
The case went stale until 1999 — the rise in homicides in the region meant police could work only sporadically on the case — when it was reopened with some “new information,” according to one of two detectives put on the case full time, Stefan Eszes. Police Staff Sgt. Peter Osinga also said, prior to reopening the case, they still had some suspects from 1991 who hadn’t been eliminated as possible killers.
To urge the public to come forward with information leading to the arrest and conviction of Wagner's killer, police offered a $10,000 reward. The money sparked a lead that more than one person may have killed Wagner.
Police said they should have done more in the case.
Phyllis agreed.
“They more or less brushed us off,” she said.
“You really don’t want to blame the police, but it seemed like after six months no one was doing anything. That's all mom and dad wanted to know, is if they caught the guy or what’s going on.”
Wagner and Phyllis's sister Brenda Kants, who now lives in Amherst, N.S., also believes police could have been more diligent in their investigation.
“Some of us blame the police for not doing enough or were not long enough on it,” Kants said.
“It’s just a question of why, and that’s something that will never be answered.
“It’s been so long, and honestly, it’s Cambridge, and people talk. I’m thinking people know something and someone’s hiding it.”
Continued work on the case revealed more than one person may have killed Wagner. Kants, who is eight years older than Wagner, remembers three possible suspects being mentioned in talks with police 20 years ago.
Marilla, at the time, said police told her that only her son’s DNA was found at the scene. Police refused to release to the media if there was DNA evidence.
Current Waterloo Region police Insp. Mark Crowell said there is still a possibility something could come of the specimens if the case is reopened in the future.
“I can't speak to the specific forensic evidence in the case … but I can say that all unsolved homicide investigations undergo recurring review and reprioritization based on available information, evidence and resources,” he said.
“As a variety of technologies and databases evolve, we continually assess the feasibility of renewed analysis of forensic evidence in unresolved cases. This work often occurs in co-ordination with the Ontario Centre of Forensic Sciences.”
To help breathe new life into the case back in 1999, Eszes and partner then-Det.-Const. Shirley Hilton had specially trained officers in the OPP’s behavioural science’s division create a killer’s profile, which had proved accurate in other cases.
The profile, based on crime scene photos, as well as police reports about the homicide, suggested the killer had a history of imprisonment, was of average intelligence, was street smart, manipulative, deceptive, in a relationship filled with strife and was violent. It was also believed he had an older-model car that was in poor condition.
The latter trait coincided with information Marilla told media she received from a psychic and clairvoyant, who said a brown or dark-coloured car, either a Camaro or Firebird, was involved and there was a woman connected in the murder. The woman had two children and was very disturbed and needed psychiatric help.
Marilla’s granddaughter, Molly Bartlett, said her grandmother had a strong belief in using alternative means of investigating her son’s death. She once used a Ouija board with Molly, about 15 years ago, and they contacted Wagner. He told them he was OK and gave the initials B.J., which they believed had some importance in his murder.
“I’ll never forget because it was a cool thing when my nana did it,” Molly said.
“I believe (B.J.) knows what happened. I was told he was relocated in B.C.”
Whether a B.J. is involved or not, Phyllis thinks people close to Wagner know more than they are saying.
“We ran into Robert’s friend at a restaurant once, and he wouldn’t even talk to us. He just got up and ran, so he knows more than anything, and we can’t find him,” she said.
That’s where the case hit a wall.
Staff Sgt. Brent Thomlison told media, upon his retirement in 2013, that it was the one case during his 31-year police career that left him with regret. He was one of the original investigators on the case.
Twelve years prior to leaving the force, he told the Cambridge Reporter, “This has been with me a long time, but it is solvable.
“We have identified persons of interest in this case. What we have always needed is information. Someone out there knows something, and what we need is that person to come forward and tell us what they know.”
Thomlison was hoping to have some closure for Marilla and husband George. George never had his peace; he passed away in 1997, before the case was reopened. Marilla died in 2013, two months after Thomlison retired.
“Both mom and dad had hoped to get some sort of closure, but, unfortunately, that didn’t happen,” Kants said, adding that not seeing her parents get answers was more heartbreaking than her own need for putting her brother’s murder to bed.
“We all sort of wished it would have given them peace of mind. It’s heartbreaking for any parent to lose a child and to lose them in that way.
“You watch all these crime stories, and you hear about them and how it affects other people, but you never think it will come to you and into your family.”
Talking about her brother, though almost 30 years passed, brings up old feelings usually reserved for birthdays and holidays, when the family was most likely to get together. Some of the feelings she has aren’t all pleasant.
“I’m thinking, whoever has done it got their just rewards — karma.”
Although Wagner had his demons, she remembers her brother as a quiet person who kept to himself, but was happy, and regularly visited his parents on weekends in Brantford. Marilla would often cook him his favourite meal, chili. He also frequently called his mother just to say “Hi.”
He also had a good-paying, full-time job.
“We all miss him,” Kants said.
“He’s gone. You keep him close to your heart, and that’s all you can do. You can’t dwell on the fact of what kind of life he could have had. Every year it gets older, and you wonder, 'What would he have been doing at that age?' But it wasn’t to be. His life was cut short.”
Approaching 28 years since Wagner’s murder, Kants said she still remains slightly hopeful.
“I don’t know. If someone can take any interest and say it’s worthwhile.
“If it happens, it happens, for us who are still remaining to get that closure.”
Phyllis hasn’t found peace, either and believes they aren’t any closer to finding Wagner’s killer.
“It’s been over 20 years, and some of these crimes, they do figure out who’s done it and that, but it seems like they’re not doing anything anymore,” said Phyllis, who remembers her brother as a mischievous kid and someone, when he got older, who became a loner but dreamed of being rich.
“(Thomlison) is retired, but do you think they are going to pass it on to somebody else to keep these cold cases going?”
While nothing new has happened in the investigation since 1999, Crowell said, as in any cold case, the service’s major crime unit would “quickly move it to the top of the priority list” if new information came to light.
“Although the WRPS major crime unit carries a busy caseload of current/recent homicide investigations, our service always has the ability to supplement the unit's staffing with investigative resources from other areas, if required,” he said.
“For example, we may bring in additional resources from our criminal investigations branch, who already possess the required skills, training and experience to assist with these complex homicide investigations.”
Anyone with information is asked to call police at 519-570-9777 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.
Link:
ONTARIO COLD CASE: Trail to Robert Wagner's killer evaporated in 1999
