Murder rocks city
Woodstock Sentinel-Review
Aug 10 2005
http://www.woodstocksentinelreview.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?archive=true&e=2082553
A 57-year-old Woodstock man has been charged with second-degree murder after police found the body of his estranged wife in her north-end home Monday night.
Police said an officer discovered the body of Lois Mordue, 59, on the main floor of her one-storey home at 17 Wendy Calder Place just before 9:30 p.m. One of the house?s doors wasn?t secured, police said.
No one else was in the residence at the time police arrived Monday night, Const. Bob McDonald of the Oxford Community Police Service said. Officers attended the home after finding a distraught man on Oxford Road 4 just south of Oxford Road 2.
"We had a report of a male in that area," McDonald said. "He had non-life-threatening injuries."
Sources said the man was found in an unstable frame of mind near a set of railway tracks in the area.
Police identified the man as Erland Wallace Mordue, the husband of Lois Mordue. Erland Mordue was taken to Woodstock General Hospital for treatment. He was arrested and charged early yesterday morning with the death of his wife.
A sombre Erland Mordue appeared in a Woodstock bail court yesterday, escorted by three detectives from the OCPS. Family members of Erland Mordue were at the courthouse to watch the brief hearing. The rest of the public was not permitted to enter the courtroom for the appearance. Mordue was remanded in custody until Friday when he will make a video appearance.
OCPS Chief Ron Fraser said investigators are still trying to confirm how Lois Mordue died. Police have sent the body for a forensic autopsy. Lois Mordue was an employee at Woodstock General Hospital. Hospital vice-president Bruce Cunningham said Lois Mordue had worked in the health records department for five years. The hospital is offering counselling support for employees, Cunningham said. "Naturally, it was a shock for the staff to hear the news of a colleague," he said.
Two police cruisers were parked in front of the crime scene yesterday on Wendy Calder Place. Many residents on the street and on the nearby stretch of Lansdowne Avenue said the victim kept to herself. One Lansdowne Avenue resident, who refused to give his name, said he knew Lois Mordue well and added that the woman has been a repeat victim of domestic violence.
"She was a great person," the Lansdowne Avenue resident said, noting Lois Mordue has an adult son and daughter. The daughter also lives on Lansdowne Avenue, just around the corner from Wendy Calder Place.
McDonald confirmed that police had a previous "dealing" involving the residence, but he wouldn’t elaborate on the incident. Up until police arrived, there seemed to be nothing peculiar happening at Lois Mordue’s home Monday night, neighbours said. A Wendy Calder Place resident, who asked not to be identified, said she was stunned that a murder investigation was happening in her quiet neighbourhood. "It’s the perfect street," the woman said. There are only about 20 houses on the street. Neighbours said Lois Mordue moved into the neighbourhood last December. She lived by herself in the home, neighbours said. "She was just a sweetheart," another neighbour said. "She often talked to me. It’s a very sad affair."
Meanwhile yesterday on the other side of the city, neighbours of Erland Mordue couldn’t believe the man is accused of murder. Many who live near Erland Mordue’s home on Walter Street said the man is anything but violent. "I’m just totally shocked," Kathy Mrychko said. "There’s just no way."
Mrychko said Erland Mordue drives a truck for a local carrier and was often working. "When he was here, you couldn’t have a better neighbour," Mrychko said. A police officer stood guard at the Walter Street home yesterday, prompting neighbours to question what was happening. "We have never had a problem with him," neighbour Mandy Doy said of Erland Mordue. Doy said Erland Mordue is "too much of a passive guy" to be involved with his wife’s death.
Doy said she saw Erland Mordue leave his house Monday night, but she thought it was odd that he didn’t return home. A woman was at his home earlier in the night, Doy said. Lee MacDonald, who lives in a home on the other side of Erland Mordue?s house, said the accused man "seems like a real decent guy."
McDonald said the police investigation could take days to complete. The homicide is the first in Woodstock since September 2003.
Article ID# 2082553