75-year-old Rossland man murdered and items stolen from his home

WATCH: A 75 year old Rossland man in dead, his family pleading for any information. Aaron McArthur reports.

VANCOUVER – The community of Rossland is in mourning after a long-time resident was found dead in his home.

Seventy-five-year-old Thomas Feeney was found dead on Thursday, June 5, at about 11 a.m. at his home on Feeney Road near Rossland.

On Monday, Supt. Tim Head, acting district officer – Southeast District, made an appeal to the public for information related to Feeney’s death and to find the items stolen from his home.

“I would like to take this opportunity to express my condolences to Tom’s family, in particular his son – Tom Feeney and son-in-law – Colin Lohrer– who are here today. On behalf of the RCMP, our thoughts and prayers are with you and your family as you deal with this tragic loss,” says Head in a statement.

He says this appears to be a “break-and-enter type incident that ended in a violent and disturbing homicide.”

This does appear to be a random incident. “We know that crimes of this nature, especially one involving a great man, like Tom Feeney, is disturbing,” says Head. “I would like to assure the public that this is a priority investigation and any and all resources needed to identify the individual or individuals responsible are in place.”

A number of items are missing from Feeney’s home and police are releasing photos in the hopes someone may have information that leads to their recovery.

Police also want any other residents who have been the victims of a break-in or an attempted break-in to contact them as they have not been able to eliminate the possibility that there is a connection with the homicide investigation.

The RCMP have also set up a dedicated tip line for the public to call with any information about these items or this homicide. Anyone can call 1-877-987-8477.

Feeney’s family has also released a statement about Tom:

My name is Colin Lohrer (Son-in-law)

I am here today – on behalf of my family – to support the RCMP’s efforts in determining who is responsible for this unthinkable crime.

Dad was born and raised in Rossland. He was a father, grandfather and great grandfather who loved to hunt and fish and enjoy the outdoors. In his younger years he loved to curl and had the opportunity to curl at the Brier. More than anything he loved to sit and tell a good story.

We are all in shock to know he has been taken away from us in such a tragic way. It has been a devastating blow to our family.

We need to know why this happened and we need the individual or individuals responsible to be identified and charged.

On behalf of the Feeney family – I would like to express that we need your help. Please have a look at the photos of the items missing from Dad’s place. If you have any information about the items or about this murder investigation – please, please, please call the Tipline and police.

We would like to thank the public and friends for their thoughts and support. While we continue to work through our unimaginable grief, we do ask for the media to respect our privacy.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: My name is Colin Lohrer (Son-in-law)</p><p>I am here today - on behalf of my family - to support the RCMP's efforts in determining who is responsible for this unthinkable crime.</p><p>Dad was born and raised in Rossland. He was a father, grandfather and great grandfather who loved to hunt and fish and enjoy the outdoors. In his younger years he loved to curl and had the opportunity to curl at the Brier. More than anything he loved to sit and tell a good story.</p><p>We are all in shock to know he has been taken away from us in such a tragic way. It has been a devastating blow to our family.</p><p>We need to know why this happened and we need the individual or individuals responsible to be identified and charged.</p><p>On behalf of the Feeney family - I would like to express that we need your help. Please have a look at the photos of the items missing from Dad's place. If you have any information about the items or about this murder investigation - please, please, please call the Tipline and police.</p><p>We would like to thank the public and friends for their thoughts and support. While we continue to work through our unimaginable grief, we do ask for the media to respect our privacy.