Charge Laid In 1994 Homicide (Kingston, ON)

*****The following press release has been posted on behalf of the Joint Penitentiary Squad, Ontario.*****

Chau – Joyceville Institution

(JOYCEVILLE, ON) – On July 24, 1994, the Joint Forces Penitentiary Squad launched an investigation into the murder of an inmate, 40 – year-old Phong CHAU.  He was located deceased in his cell at the Joyceville Institution, located on Highway 15, Kingston, with apparent trauma to his body.

On February 6, 2014, police investigators from the Joint Forces Penitentiary Squad, under the direction of Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) Detective Inspector Paul Yelle, travelled to Saanich, British Columbia to execute an arrest warrant for first degree murder.  With the assistance of the Saanich Police Department, officers arrested 40-year-old Brian RICHES, also known as Brian SPINKS, for the murder of CHAU.

RICHES, also an inmate of Joyceville Institution at the time of the murder, is being returned to Kingston, ON and is scheduled to appear in the Ontario  Court of Justice, Kingston on Saturday, February 8, 2014 by video remand.  He will have a further court appearance on Monday, February 10, 2014 in Kingston.

The OPP would like to thank the Saanich Police Department for their assistance and cooperation during this investigation.

The Joint Forces Penitentiary Squad, led by the OPP, is combined of officers from the OPP, Kingston Police, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) and Correctional Service Canada (CSC).

Contact: Sgt. Kristine Rae

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