HALIFAX – Two men charged in connection with the 2011 murder of Keya Simon in Dartmouth appeared in court on Thursday.
Halifax police charged Demarqus Beals, 25, with second-degree murder and Carondo Downey, also 25, with aggravated assault and possession of a dangerous weapon.
Both appeared in Dartmouth court separately Thursday morning. Many supporters of the accused were also at the courthouse.
Beals wore a blue jacket and looked straight ahead during the proceedings. He will return to court Sept. 22 to set a date for a preliminary inquiry.
As he left the courtroom, someone said “Love you Demarqus.” He replied “Love you too.”
Downey wore a blue sweatshirt and smiled at the audience as he was brought in and leaned back on the bench during the proceedings.
- 2 teens charged with murder in case of 16-year-old killed outside Halifax mall
- Green Party deputy leader given jail sentence for Fairy Creek old growth protests
- Cars torched, explosions heard in suspected arson in Montreal neighbourhood
- Gas station clerk stabbed several times during violent attack at Ultramar in Montreal
He will return to court Aug. 26. As he left the courtroom, someone yelled “I love you Ron.”
Both men have been remanded into custody.
Superintendent Jim Perrin of the Integrated Criminal Investigation Division of Halifax Regional Police said Beals had been a suspect in the investigation.
He said Beals was arrested in Renous, New Brunswick while Downey was arrested at a residence in Dartmouth.
Perrin said he could not comment on why the investigation took as long as it did.
“There’s no rhyme or reason why it takes so long. It’s just part of the ongoing commitment. When we think, as investigators, we have it to the level where it’s going to withstand the scrutiny of trial, we lay the charge. That’s what we did today.”
Perrin said investigators spoke with Simon’s mother Thursday morning.
“She’s very appreciative that we got to this point. We hope what we’ve done up to this point starts them on their journey of closure and the loss of her 19-year-old daughter.”
Simon, 19, was found unresponsive at a building on Pinecrest Drive in Dartmouth on January 8, 2011 after police responded to a report of a stabbing. She was pronounced dead at the scene.
Police believe a group showed up at a party in the building and were involved in an altercation that spilled out onto the front lawn, where Simon was stabbed.
Simon’s 32-year-old sister was also stabbed in the same altercation. She was treated for non-life threatening injuries in hospital and later released.
Earlier this year, the case was added to the Nova Scotia list of rewards for major unsolved crimes but Perrin could not say whether information from the program played a factor in the charges laid.
Comments