Murder victim Joseph Gallant and his wife came to Red Deer from Prince Edward Island just three months ago.
Like many people from the Maritimes, he was lured west by the prospect of work. A mechanic and jack of all trades, Gallant was working for a local man as well as fixing vehicles for people on the side while setting up house in a rented residence in Grandview.
“He was just one of the nicest little fellows you’d ever want to meet,” said a woman, who along with her husband, handles repairs and maintenance on the rental home where Gallant and his wife lived.
Gallant’s son told her that his dad wanted to make some money to pay off the mortgage on his house in Prince Edward Island.
Sometime after midnight early Friday, Gallant’s hopes ended in tragedy when he was fatally stabbed at the rented home. He died later in hospital.
“They’re all totally devastated. His parents are 70 years old. They just can’t understand what happened to their son.”
Relatives, including one of Gallant’s sons, are in Red Deer to arrange to have his body taken back home.
CBC reported in Prince Edward Island that Gallant leaves behind two adult sons and a grandson.
“I can’t believe that this has actually happened,” Gallant’s sister, Tammy Gallant, told the CBC. “We’re here for one another. We’re doing what we can for one another.”
In Red Deer, the woman who helped with maintenance said neither Gallant, nor a woman who rented the house for a year before him, had anything to do with the drug house troubles that frustrated neighbours for periodic stretches over a number of years.
Those issues ended in 2017 when a previous house resident moved. That’s also when the woman and her husband began looking after the property.
Gallant and his wife were model tenants and the home was like any other on the quiet street until Friday’s incident, said the caretaker.
A neighbour echoed that the recurring drug traffic and other problems had ended in mid-2017 and all was quiet at the house.
“This kind of came out of the blue as far as I’m concerned,” said the neighbour, who lives with her husband nearby.
The husband said around midnight, there was a commotion outside.
“I heard someone outside, yelling ‘Call the police. I’ve been stabbed.’”
Neighbours called 911 and went to Gallant’s aid in his backyard, where he was bleeding from a stab wound in his side.
One of the neighbours who helped him that night said she wanted to ensure people knew that Gallant and his wife had no connection with the previous issues at the house.
“Joseph and his wife were really good neighbours. They were quiet and clean. We’ve never had any problems since they’ve been living there.”
RCMP have said little about what happened.
Police continue to search for two suspects, Quentin Lee Strawberry, 37, and Jennifer Lee Caswell, 37, both of Red Deer.
They have been charged with second-degree murder and assault causing bodily harm.
One of the suspects is armed and the public are warned not to approach either.
pcowley@reddeeradvocate.com
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