Police in New Brunswick are refusing to comment on a news report that says former Moosehead beer executive Richard Oland died from being bludgeoned to death with an axe.
Quoting an unnamed source, the Toronto Star published a story Tuesday saying that Oland, a prominent businessman, brutally died in his office in Saint John last week.
But Saint John police have refused to comment on that report, and have thus far declined to say how the 69-year-old Oland died.
Police believe that the death was not a robbery nor was it a random act of violence. They are treating the death as a homicide.
No arrests have been made in the case.
Although Oland was a member of the family that owns Moosehead, he left the brewing company in the 1980s.
Oland was remembered Tuesday at a funeral where hundreds of locals joined politicians and business leaders.
Dan Bardwell, a sailing teammate from the U.S. who travelled north to bid farewell to his friend, remembered a fierce competitor and a team player.
"He was a leader and we loved him, and we had such a great dynamic," Bardwell told CTV Atlantic outside the church where the funeral took place.
Provincial MLA Victor Boudreau said that Oland's death is a loss for the greater community.
"I think he needs to be respected and remembered for all the great contributions he's brought to the community and the greater Saint John area," he said.
The service was held at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church in Rothesay, not far from Saint John.
Since leaving Moosehead, Oland worked in the transport business and directed several firms. Recently, he led the investment firm Far End Corp., The Canadian Press reported.
Oland leaves behind his wife Constance, two daughters, a son and seven grandchildren.
