An Alberta man arrested yesterday for murder is now suspected of killing two people, after the discovery of a second body near Prince George, B.C., police say
Micheal James Bartley, 36, was arrested in the Paradise Valley area of Alberta Thursday and has already been charged with second-degree murder for the killing of Owen Thompson and attempted murder for the stabbing of a 48-year-old woman.
A day after Thompson, a 48-year-old Prince George man, was discovered dead at a farm in the Clear Lake Saw Mill area southwest of the city, RCMP found a second male body in the woods nearby.
"It was off in the bush area, and that's why we didn't discover it on the first day," Const. Gary Godwin told ctvbc.ca.
The second victim has yet to be identified, and investigators have not yet determined a cause of death.
Investigators are consulting with Crown counsel about further murder charges in connection with the second body.
The female stabbing victim, found alongside Thompson on Thursday, was flown to hospital, where she is in recovery with non-life threatening injuries. Godwin said that she was awake and talking by Friday afternoon.
Although Thompson's body showed signs of stab wounds, a cause of death has not yet been determined.
The three victims and Bartley were all acquainted with each other, Godwin said.
"We don't have a motive for this at this point in time, but what I can say is that this was not a domestic."
Bartley's next scheduled court appearance is in April. He is being held in custody at the Lloydminster RCMP detachment.
With the discovery of the second body Friday, Prince George's murder count for 2010 is now at three.
