Roger Smith, 40, and Wendy Haveron, 45, were found dead in their burned out home south of London, Ont., on Feb. 2, 1999.
Twenty-five years later, provincial police are still looking for their killer or killers.
“Both the Elgin County OPP and family members believe that somebody out there has some piece of information regarding the deaths of Roger and Wendy,” Const. Brett Phair said.
“Any detail that (the public) may feel is insignificant could have a big impact on the investigation and we’re asking anybody that has any piece of information to come forward and provide that to the police so we can follow it in its entirety to see where that lead takes us.”
The Southwold Fire Department and Elgin County OPP responded to a house fire at 11553 Wellington Rd., just outside of St. Thomas, early on Feb. 2, 1999, and found two bodies inside. Investigators determined that the two had actually died of blunt force trauma and the fire was deliberately set.
Phair confirmed that Smith and Haveron were in a common-law relationship but did not provide any other specifics about either their lives or their deaths.
“It remains an active investigation. So beyond the detail of blunt force trauma, I can’t go in any further detail.”
Phair added that the province is offering a $50,000 reward for any information leading to the arrest and conviction of those responsible for the deaths of Smith and Haveron.
In 2019, 20 years after the murders, police released a video to appeal to the public for information. The OPP confirmed that the information in that video remains accurate.
The video also includes comments from Haveron’s sister Wanda.
“Probably about six months after it happened, I was going through my scrapbooks and I was reading the stories, and then all of a sudden it hit me. This is our story. This is us. This isn’t reading about someone else’s murder. This is ours. This impacted us as a family,” Wanda said at the time.
“To know that someone is paying, that would mean a lot to all of us.”