Military commander accused in two murders tries to kill himself: report

The former base commander of CFB Trenton, Ontario, accused of killing two women and sexually assaulting two others, tried to kill himself just before Easter Sunday by stuffing cardboard from a toilet paper roll down his throat, a Kingston newspaper reported.

Unnamed sources from the Quinte Detention Centre in Napanee, Ontario, where Col. Russell Williams is being held, told the Kingston Whig-Standard that at about 5 a.m. on Saturday, Williams used mustard to write a suicide note on the wall of his cell.

The note said his affairs were in order and that his feelings were too much to bear, the paper reported.

Williams has been charged with first-degree murder in the deaths of Jessica Lloyd, 27, of Belleville, Ontario, and Cpl. Marie-France Comeau, 37, of Brighton, Ontario. He is facing sexual assault charges in relation to two September home invasions in the Tweed, Ontario area, where he owns a cottage.

On Saturday morning, Williams jammed his cell door with cardboard and foil, apparently to prevent staff from gaining entry and stopping him, it was reported.

Detention centre staff, however, were able to force their way into the cell to rescue Williams, who was being watched.

The cardboard roll he used had been stuffed with more foil and cardboard, the report said, adding that Williams is now on a 24-hour, one-on-one suicide watch.

Williams is next scheduled to appear in court April 29.

Reached Sunday evening, the lieutenant on duty at the detention centre declined to comment. Calls to media relations staff at the Correctional Service of Canada went unanswered.

Williams’ lawyer, Michael Edelson, who was reached at home Sunday evening, said only that he had no comment.

The Kingston Whig-Standard’s sources said Williams had rehearsed the suicide bid on Friday, when he used a pencil to jam the lock of his cell to see how long it would take staff to unjam it. Apparently, it took 15 minutes.

The newspaper has previously reported Williams’ jailhouse behaviour.

The paper reported Williams had been placed on suicide watch after a psychiatric assessment. It also noted that Williams had been acting as though he were a prisoner of war, only giving authorities his name, rank and serial number.

During a brief Belleville court appearance via video link in mid-February, Williams’ friend of nine years, Lt.-Col. Tony O’Keefe, said he barely recognized the former colonel, who had sighed before giving his name.

“He just looks tired,” said O’Keefe, the director of cadets at the Royal Military College in Kingston, Ontario.

None of the allegations against Williams has been proven in court.

Ottawa Citizen