Suspect in B.C. double murder arrived on student visa weeks before, Crown prosecutor says

A murder trial has heard that Arnold and Joanne De Jong hosted a “joyful” family celebration at their Abbotsford, B.C., home, on May 8, 2022, with a family member later telling police they were “alive and well” when she left at 10 p.m.

But when family members couldn’t reach them the next day, a son-in-law visited and found Joanne De Jong dead before calling police, who quickly determined they were dealing with a double homicide, Crown prosecutor Dorothy Tsui said.

The trial of the three men accused of killing the couple in a violent invasion got under way Monday, with the prosecution alleging the suspects were motivated by “debt, financial pressure and greed.”