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| Richard Oland |
Richard Oland was born in 1941 to the affluent Oland family. The second born son to Phillip and Mary Oland. The Oland family is considered "old money", and the area they live is the highest income per capita in Canada. They own Moosehead Breweries, founded in 1867 and they have owned and operated the brewery for 6 generations.
Richard Oland was a businessman and former Vice President of Moosehead Breweries. He studied at the University of New Brunswick focussing on biochemistry, later obtaining a Certificate in Brewing Technology. By 1980 he was Vice President of the company, but a falling out resulted in him leaving the company in 1981.
Striking out on his own, Richard founded 3 companies Kinghurst Estates Limited, Brookville Transport Limited, and Far End Corporation. He became a successful businessman with his fortune near $37 million.
Murder
In July 2011, Richard Oland's body was discovered in his office at Far End Corporation`s Canterbury street in Uptown Saint John`s office by his personal assistant. He was bludgeoned to death, and the crime scene told a brutal tale.
Described by investigators as one of the bloodiest crime scenes of his career, Richard had over 45 wounds on his hands, neck, and head. Six of the wounds were on his hands, likely as he tried to defend himself from attack.
After Richard was struck, he fell to the floor where the attack continued. His skull was fractured in multiple places, eyesockets "cracked like an eggshell", and a concave area spanning 10 cm long and 7 cm wide was bashed into his skull.
Every single wall in Richards office had blood spatter on it, as well as his computer, desk, chair, filing cabinets, and an empty pizza box in the garbage can. Police analysts stated that the attacker would have a significant amount of blood on his or her person.
Police analysts also discovered that some of Richards wounds were from blunt force and some were caused by a blade of some sort. Either two weapons were used, or, as Police believe, a hatchet or drywall hammer was used. No weapons were found at the crime scene, and none entered as evidence in the later trial.
Investigation
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| Dennis Oland |
Two weeks into the investigation, police zeroed in on Richard's son Dennis. Dennis admitted to being the last person to see Dennis alive (except the killer, assuming he is innocent), and that their relationship was strained. During an interview, Dennis admitted that his father was a difficult person to deal with and that Dennis believed that he did not live up to his father's expectations.
Police had interviewed Dennis the day after the body was discovered. They had asked Dennis what he was wearing the night of the murder to which Dennis replied that he hadn't changed and he was wearing the same clothes that he was wearing at the moment. It was later confirmed through security cameras that Dennis was wearing the same clothes the day after the murder as when he was being questioned.
Police charged Dennis Oland in November 2013 of second-degree murder. Dennis's family supported him throughout, with his uncle paying for his bail.
Police said that Dennis had murdered his father for financial reasons, flying into a murderous rage after being denied a loan. Richard's cell phone "pinged" off of a tower near a location that Dennis said he had stopped after speaking with his father that night.
The judge at the preliminary trial said that cell phone records had shown that Richard's phone was still functioning 3 days after the murder and that the cell provider and police had failed to prove that Richard's phone was anywhere near that cell phone tower.
Police at a later date tested Dennis's brown jacket. They said that the jacket was dry cleaned beforehand to cover up any evidence, while the defense said he had it dry cleaned because Dennis had visitation and his fathers funeral to attend. Four microscopic specs of blood were found on that jacket, matching either Richard's or Dennis's blood.
Major mistakes were made early in the investigation into Richard Oland's death. Police failed to properly secure the crime scene from contamination. Police used the bathroom in the office for 2 days before anyone thought to check it for any evidence. After they decided to check the bathroom for evidence, blood belonging to Richard's financial manager's son, Galen McFadden was found.
During the interview with Dennis, when he said he was wearing the same clothes as the night of the murder, police did not collect those clothes for testing. When they did collect Dennis's brown jacket, they found the 4 microscopic specs of blood. It was handled barehanded by multiple officers before being rolled up and stuffed into an evidence bag, that blood could have come from anywhere at that point.
Richard's secretary stated that Richard had a scalp condition that sometimes would cause small cuts that would bleed, and that Richard was a close talker that would often touch you when speaking. The defense argued that the blood found on Dennis's jacket could have been from an innocent transfer.
Police went in and out the main door for nearly a week without gloves before they decided to test the door for fingerprints. A footprint discovered had to be checked against police footwear because of many officers including the Deputy Chief walking through the crime scene unsupervised and without protective gear on. They also never checked the back door for any evidence.
The officer tasked with guarding the crime scene admitted that at least 19 officers, all superior to him, went in and out of the office where Richard's body was found. Deputy Chief Glen McCloskey was at the crime scene for nearly 4 hours, stating he entered the crime scene one to "observe the body" and once out of "curiosity".
Defense proved that items at the crime scene had been moved by analyzing the photographs taken by police.
Police Misconduct
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| Glen McCloskey |
The Deputy Chief, Glen McCloskey, was later accused of suggesting other officers lie under oath about his presence at the crime scene. He was later charged with 5 counts of breaching the Police Act. Two counts of discreditable conduct, and one count each of deceitful behavior, neglect of duty, and being party to a breach of the professional code of conduct.
McCloskey was cleared of any criminal wrongdoing, but a professional hearing was postponed until the case against Dennis Oland has been resolved. On April 30, 2018, New Brunswick Police Commision announced that Glen McCloskey was retiring effective immediately.
The New Brusnwick Police Commision only has the authority to discipline active police officers. Deputy Chief Glen McCloskey's retirement effectively ended the investigation into any wrongdoing.
Dennis Oland's defense attorney alleges that McCloskey was not called in Dennis's trial so they wouldn't get the chance to cross-examine him.
Trial
Even with all these issues with the investigation, or maybe because of them, Dennis Oland was convicted of second-degree murder in December 2015. In October 2016, New Brunswick Court of Appeals threw out Dennis's conviction stating that the judge in the first trial had "erred in his instruction to the Jury to disregard a key piece of evidence"
Dennis Oland's retrial began November 21, 2018, and is expected to last at least 4 months.
Thoughts
I know that in cases like these, especially one that is essentially still ongoing, there may be information that has been withheld to the public. But from what I can see as an outsider looking in, police decided that Dennis Oland was guilty regardless of what the forensic analysis says.
Keep in mind how violent the attack was and how much blood was found at the scene. Whoever is responsible would be absolutely covered in blood, not just 4 microscopic blood spots. The only was Dennis could have killed his father Richard is if he was wearing something different (CCTV video shows him wearing the same clothes the next day without any obvious blood), or if he was wearing some kind of protection, like scrubs or a hazmat suit. Which begs the question, if he was wearing something to keep the blood off of his clothes, where did it go?
Police found no blood on Dennis's shoes, shoelaces, shirt or pants, nothing on his hands or person. Just 4 microscopic blood spots on his jacket. Invisible to the naked eye.
Forensics is better than a confession when it comes to proving guilt in court. Confessions can be unreliable but proving a crime forensically will lead to a sure conviction. In this case, the police handling of the crime scene and evidence throws everything into question.
Even if Dennis is guilty, I don't think it can be proven beyond a reasonable doubt due to how the investigation was handled. If he is innocent, I also doubt that the real killer will ever be found and face justice.
Regardless, Dennis's fate at the time of this writing is still up in the air.
Thank you for reading,
See you next time.
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Interesting story. I think you are right in that the forensics does not support a guilty verdict. Another good one, Liam
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