Laval man charged in 2004 murder of his wife

Police may have cracked cold case Laval police believe they've cracked a cold case, arresting a 53-year-old man in the murder of his wife.

Fifteen years after a grisly killing in Laval, the husband of the victim has been charged with first-degree murder.

Officers arrested 53-year-old Ernesto Fera last week in connection with the murder of his wife, Nadia Panarello.

He appeared in court last week and was arraigned on charges of first-degree murder.

Panarello was 38-years-old when she died, the mother of two girls then aged 10 and 14.

Her family last saw Panarello alive the morning of February 12, 2004.

Panarello was supposed to go to work but it appeared she never left home.

When family members returned home around noon they discovered her body on the second floor of the home. She had been stabbed multiple times.

Police spent years investigating the murder and launched a bid for new clues in 2012, saying at the time that they had not found a murder weapon, and there was no sign of forced entry to the home.

At this point police have not said what led them to arrest Fera but Officer Julie Marois said investigators never stopped working on Panarello's death.

"We have to say that during our investigation all elements were pointing towards Mr. Fera. But even with clues leading to a person it's not enough to make a criminal accusation. What we have today is the result of a long investigation," she said.

Police said in 2012 that a clue may be in photos delivered to the victim's mother.

The day of the murder Panarello's mother, Antonietta Zompa, received a package that included multiple photos of people vacationing at a chalet in the Laurentians and of a woman on vacation in what appeared to be the Caribbean. None of the photos were of Panarello.

Fera made a brief appearance in court the morning of July 18 to set a date for a bail hearing. He will next appear in court on August 7.