Called 911-woman later found dead

April 24, 2008

Abbotsford Police Const. Casey Vinet

John Van Putten Photo

Abbotsford police are launching an internal probe after an uninvestigated 911 call came from the same residence where a woman was found murdered 11 1/2 hours later.

Hendrikje Priester, 52, was found dead in her Mayfair Street apartment by police at 7:30 a.m. March 25.

Priester's common-in-law partner, Daniel Raymond Casgrain, 54, was arrested on scene and later charged with second-degree murder.

Const. Casey Vinet said a police operator received a 911 call from the home at 7:55 p.m. the night before Priester's body was discovered.

The operator who answered the call found the line disconnected.

The operator called back twice and spoke with a man at the residence before determining police didn't need to respond, said Vinet.

"The operator didn't think anyone was in distress or an emergency was underway," said Vinet.

Apparently, the operator thought the call was related to a theft that may have occurred.

Vinet said the conversation couldn't be made public as it was a criminal investigation and details might impact court proceedings.

Police did attend the apartment on two previous occasions in relation to disputes between the suspect and his son, said Vinet.

However, officers had not attended the apartment on any occasion in connection to the victim, he said.

The police probe to be conducted by the department's professional standards section will examine the 911 audio tapes, if the operator followed procedure and the decision not to send an officer, said Vinet.

"We receive 50,000 calls a year, 35,000 of which are for police," he said.

"That being said, we rely on our operators to make decisions every day guided by a series of procedures under difficult circumstances.

"Whether a police response at the time [of the call] would have prevented the sad and tragic outcome is difficult to say and would be speculative on my part."

Vinet said the outcome of the probe into the 911 call will be made as long as the findings don't interfere with the court case.

Casgrain is scheduled to next appear in Abbotsford provincial court April 28.

Email | Print | Letter to Editor | Share on Facebook

Called 911-woman later found dead

Most read in your Region

Most read across BC