Hundreds of tips being run down

A2 - The Terrace Standard, Wednesday, January 13, 1999

Profiler to work on murder

By CHRISTIANA WIENS
TERRACE RCMP are bringing in specialized investi-
gators to help solve the Dec, 9, 1998 murder of Linda
LeFranc in her Braun St. townhouse.
A profiler is expected this week to look at crime scene
evidence and to prepare a possible profile of the killer,

The profiler should be able to figure out physical details

such as which band the killer used and the person's height.

While that will be helpful, Terrace RCMP Staff Sergeant
Bob Solvason cautioned that these details cau sometimes
be generic mgd@incon
stretch of the imagination,” he said.

Yet Corporal Anders Udsen of the local general investi-. |
gation section says investigators are also interested in
psychological details the profiler may find that could’

determine whelher LeFranc knew the killer.

Her murder has left some residents wondering if there is

a killer on the loose in Terrace.

Udsen sounded skeptical on-that front. “There's sno evi-

dence to support thal there’s some kind of psycho-weirdo
killer out there,”’ he said.

Udsen did stress people should be aware that a murder
has happened and should take normal safety precautions.

Investigators also announced last week they have ruled |
out many of the people they were interested in at the start —
of the investigation. “We're not looking at some potential __

suspects the way we were before,’’ Solvason said.

That means officers will continue knocking on doors in
the area surrounding LeFrane’s Braun Street townhouse.

They talking to each and every person in the area, hoping
somebody will remember hearing or seeing something un-
usual in the early morning hours of Wednesday, Dec, 9,

Each sighting or noise officers come up wilh generates
what Udsen called a “‘tip’’ or file that needs to be checked
out in order to conduct a thorough investigation.

So far, officers have looked into more than 200 tips, To-
gether, they almost fill a three-drawer filing cabinet in the
local dctachment’s conference room which has been turned
into the investigation’s nerve centre.

Concluding a tip investigation cr eliminating a lead is a
slow process requiring a lot of leg work, but it daes mean
officers are working the case as hard as they can, said Ud-
sen. ‘‘It’s almost as good as solving the case,’’ he said.

To eliminate tips and eventuaily entire suspects from the
case, Udsen said officers have used alibis, store surveil-
lance cameras, quite a few polygraph tests and phone
records.

Udsen said the detachment is also considering bringing
in analysts ina couple weeks who would examine the case
from the beginning.

But, he said, he’s hoping they won’t be needed.

Udsen hopes Terrace’s four-officer general investigation
section, three Prince George investigators and as many
general duty officers as possible will be able to narrow
down the case before that happens.

LeFranc, 37, was a single mother and office administra-
tion student at Northwest Community College. She died of
multiple stab wounds.

Lefranc’s seven-year-old daughter found her mother’s
body the moming of Dec, 9 and told neighbours to call the
police, The child now lives in Kitinat under the care of her
maternal grandmother. on 5 chee

The investigation is consuming 2 an‘ enormous amount of !
the detachment’s resources which is already short-staffed.

“We can’t use overtime forever,’’ Solvasou said as of-
ficers start to burn out, “‘We’re doing the best we can,’?

FROM FRONT

sive, “Its not infallible by any |

! has
; inatertity .. eave, -meaning ...

THE SCENE OF THE CRIME:

RCMP officer Cpl. Anders Udsen points to Linda

LeFranc’s townhouse on a map of southwest Terrace. Local officers are interview-
ing the area's residents in hopes of finding more clues into the murderer's identity.

Medical specialists
being hired for here

GAPS IN the local medical
specialist contingent are
slowly being filled.

Dr. Heinz Gunter from
South Africa began work as
an anesthetist last week,
bringing that specialist com-
plement to two full time and
one part time persons.

And Dr. Sheila Watson
returned! -. from. *. ‘a°-?

there are now two full time
obstetrician/gynecologists
on duty.

The vacant nuclear medi-

Pot grower takes on
police over warrant

time. He also has two

iZ d
we teenaged children. who he.

she

building’s age,
number af occupants,

said.

Her five-year-old home,
for example, is heated with
gas and uses a gas hot water
tank. If she were on B.C,
Hydro’s mouthly payment
plan she would pay $55 a
month,

Erb’s five-bedroom, 2,800
square foot house is about

the same age as Elkins’. At’

the time of his arrest, Erb
paid $72 a month.

Abnomially high bills of
$150 4 month would come
from houses with electric
heat and bot water whose
residents do a lot of laundry,
she said.

But Const. Marc Landry at
the Terrace RCMP general
investigation section says
that the detachment uses a
number of sources. when
they apply for a warrant, in-
cluding a suspect’s
credibility and history. -

Erb doesn’t deny he was
growing marijuata, aud says
the RCMP confiscated nine
of bis starter plants.

But he says the RCMP
must follow the: rules, and
says he isn’t satisfied with
the way officers handled
themselves during the arrest,

He compares the RCMP’s
conduct on the day of his
August, 1997 arrest to 4
home invasion atid says he
feels officers improperly
used their firearms during
an unlawful search of his
home. — .

‘(An officer) jumped
from door to door squaring
himself in cach ‘doorway
with his shot gun leveled

waist to chest high,’ Exb

said. :
Erb said there was no need

lo point guns at him and his

friends because all-of them

already --had their . hands’
above their : heads at the

says could have easily been |

shot.

He says he was unlawfully
confined when officers put
him in jail overnight while
he waited for his case to be
heard by a judge the next
morning.

His complaint to the Pub-

names 10 officers who
warked in Terrace at the
time of the arrest.

The commission is cur-
tently reviewing the case.
Erb has also been in contact

‘with the B.C, Civil Liberties

Association who routinely
provide information to
people who want to enter
complaints to the RCMP

lic Complaints Commission commission,

Avalanche claims
two Terrace men

- TWO TERRACE avalanche technicians died last week
while testing slopes near Bob Quinn Lake and Hwy 37
North of Meziadin Junction.

The men, Allan Evenchick, 45, and Allan Munro, 35,
were both employees of the transportation and highways
ministry in Terrace and were experts in avalanche survival.

They had finished helicopter bombing potential ava-
lanche site and decided to skia slope they were tesling when
anavalanche hil,

They were last heard from at about 1:30 p.m. Jan. 7.

When they didn’t return by 4:30 p.m, the RCMP in Ste-
wart were notified and a search began.

By 12 noon on Friday, Jan. 8 the men were found and
their families were notified.

Both men were married with children.

. A
PZ ZAZY OF TERRACE
SCHOOL OF PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT & MODELLING

Bella Hepburn, Schoal Director

Watch for Febrvary 4th Opening
Tel 638-8484 for information _

HEBB POWERTREAD
TREADMILLS
and exercise equipment
| from
Gs Northern Healthcare Gy
in the Park Avenue Medical Building,

Terrace

cine direclor position at
Mills Memorial Hospital
has been filled by Dr. Mack
Hudson, who is based out of
Prince Rupert.

Still needed is a second
radiologist.

And there’s hope a second
pediatrician will be here by
late spring.

tot

Sverre re

In the meantime, there is
one locum pediatrician on
duty. The other pediatrician,
Dr. Jane Pegg, is on
maternity leave.

As well, recruitment is
still going on for a
psychiatrist. to manage the
psych ward at Mills
Memorial Hospital.

Ralph Madsen, Area Sales Manager and Ron
Brown, Territory Manager for Praxair Canada,
North America’s largest industrial and medical

gas supplier and David Grubb of
River Industries,

present Sylvia and Don Stark
with 2 airline tickets and 2

Superbowl XXXIII tickets at
River Industries in Terrace.

The Starks were the winners of the draw of
70,000 entries in North America to the Miami,
Florida event held January 31, 1999. River
Industries is Praxair’s local distributor of
welding products.

www.canadiantire.com

Or Email us at
www. cantire.terrace@osg.net

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Your website/email address
could be here!
. Contact us at 638-7283

The Terrace Standard
standard@kermode.net

presents

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Saturday, February 13, 1999
at 8 p.m. in the
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