Hamilton police say the discovery of a dead man in a city centre residence is the first homicide of 2021.
The deceased is Ethan MacCullouch, 35, who police say was found in an apartment at MacNab and Vine streets by a landlord around 9 a.m. on Monday.
Forensics investigators say the find by first responders was “immediately suspicious,” and believe the victim was killed days earlier.
“There was enough there for them to be concerned, to recognize that this was not just a sudden death,” said Det. Sgt. Steve Berezuik in an update on Tuesday afternoon.
The cause of death is still under investigation and a post mortem began on Tuesday morning.
Berezuik said the man had lived at the location for some period and was known to police.
The cause of death is being withheld to protect the integrity of the investigation, according to detectives.
Police are canvassing the neighbourhood for video dating back to Thursday, Jan. 28.
Berezuik says there are no witnesses at this point and that other tenants in the building are being questioned.
“We’re going to try to follow up with some of the tenants upstairs, but at this point, we have no witnesses,” according to Berezuik.
Anyone with information can reach out to Hamilton police at 905-546-4067.