Man charged with 2nd-degree murder in connection with mother’s homicide in Halifax

A 26-year-old man has been charged with second-degree murder in connection with the death of his mother in Halifax.

Halifax Regional Police have charged Ryan Richard Lamontagne, 26, with the murder of 65-year-old Linda Lamontagne.

READ MORE: Police investigating woman’s death in Halifax

Police say they responded to a home in the 6300 block of Willow Street at 7:30 a.m. Tuesday following a call reporting “suspicious circumstances.”

When they arrived around 7:30 a.m., they found Lamontagne in the backyard with the body of his mother, 65-year-old Linda Lamontagne.

The suspect was taken into custody without incident, police say.

An autopsy was conducted by the Nova Scotia Medical Examiner Service, and the woman’s death was ruled a homicide.

Lamontagne appeared briefly in Halifax provincial court on Wednesday and was remanded to the East Coast Forensic Hospital for a psychiatric assessment.

A team of sheriffs restrained the accused as he was brought into court, and a sheriff had to prompt Lamontagne to look at the judge as she addressed him.

In court documents, police say the young man is charged with indecently interfering with human remains “by attempting to bury Linda Lamontagne.”

Lamontagne is due back in court Oct. 29.

With files from the Canadian Press