Husband charged in connection with death of actress wife in Calgary

Shannon Madill (Burgess) and Joshua Burgess at the Calgary Fringe Festival in August 2014 (Facebook)

A Calgary man has been charged with second-degree murder in connection with the death of his wife who disappeared more than seven months ago.

Joshua Burgess, 29, was arrested Sunday, two days after Calgary police located the remains of Shannon Madill, 25.

Madill, a well-known performer in the Calgary area, was last seen by a family member on Nov. 27, 2014. She was scheduled to meet her brother at a Calgary theatre on November 30 but never turned up. Her family reported her missing the next day.

Police discovered Madill's body in the couple's home in the 1900 block of Spiller Road Southeast on Friday. Investigators were executing a search warrant at the residence. The search of the house continued Sunday.

Staff Sgt. Colin Chisholm told CTV Calgary that an initial search of the home was conducted when Madill was first reported missing with Burgess' consent. However, as the investigation developed they decided to search the home again.

"It wasn't a tip," said Chisholm. "As the investigation progressed it rapidly transition from a missing person investigation into a homicide investigation," he added.

Police said that Burgess had been co-operative throughout the ordeal and there had been no previous calls to their residence.

"There was no history of domestic conflict (or) domestic violence whatsoever in that relationship," said Chisholm.

In December, Burgess stood alongside members of Madill's family as they made a passionate plea for information about her whereabouts.

At the time, Madill's family confirmed that the couple had separated but continued to live together in their Calgary home.

Madill, a performance artist and stand-up comedian, frequented Calgary and Edmonton's acting circuits.

Burgess is scheduled to appear in court on Monday.