This Robbery Wasn’t Supposed to End in Murder—But It Did - main

This Robbery Wasn't Supposed to End in Murder — But It Did

By Maria W. • Dec 22, 2024

A robbery planned to go down quietly turned into a deadly execution, leaving the Calgary community stunned and asking, "How did it go so wrong?" What started as a scheme to steal a safe ended with a tragic death, and now, the courtroom is hearing the dark details that reveal what led to Chad Kowalchuk's murder.

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The Plan Was to Steal, Not to Kill

Justin Boucher, 31, Ronald Abraham, 42, and Robert Sims, 31, are on trial for the first-degree murder of 53-year-old Chad Kowalchuk on the night of Feb. 13, 2022. The initial plan was simply to rob Kowalchuk of the drugs and cash he kept secured in a safe in his room. Due to his health issues, Kowalchuk often stayed in his room, making him an easy target. His roommates set him up for the robbery and fabricated an elicit lie. The situation quickly spiraled into chaos, revealing how swiftly a "simple" crime can unravel into something far darker with just one lie.

This Robbery Wasn’t Supposed to End in Murder—But It Did - 1

A Dangerous Shift in Motives

The shift from robbery to murder seems to have started when Kowalchuk's roommates discovered a photo of an 11-year-old girl on his computer. The story started to snowball as the roommates spread the word among their friends, changing from child pornography to having sexual relations with the child. This story stirred something dark within the alleged murderers, leading to a fatal decision that night. What was initially planned to be a robbery had taken a chilling turn, and the stakes were now deadly.

The Confession and Lack of Remorse

In chilling testimony, the sister of Justin Boucher, revealed that her brother had confessed to killing Chad Kowalchuk and showed no remorse as he alleged the man was a pedophile. She described his disturbing admission, recounting how he and two other men had hog tied Kowalchuk in his room and beat him to death. Initially, they planned to dismember the body to cover up their crime, but then shifted to a "plan B", according to the Calgary Herald, instead setting fire to the home five days after Kowalchuk's brutal murder.

The Trial Continues

Now, as the trial unfolds, each piece of evidence plays a role in understanding how a planned robbery spiraled into a murder that rocked the Calgary community. The trial is still underway, and Calgary waits for justice to be served.

References: Witness tells murder trial plan was to rob Calgarian Chad Kowalchuk of his safe, not kill him | Story told by beating victim's roommate 'became a motive for murder,' jurors hear | Sister of Calgary murder suspect said he confessed to killing and wasn't sorry for what he did

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