SAINT JOHN, N.B. - New Brunswick's business establishment is mourning the sudden death of former beer brewing scion Richard Oland, a man described as a major force in the Atlantic Canadian economy.

Oland was a member of the family that owns Moosehead Breweries Ltd., but he left the company in the 1980s.

The 69-year-old business executive was found dead Thursday inside a building in Canterbury Street in downtown Saint John, N.B.

Police described the death as suspicious but released no details. An autopsy was scheduled for Friday.

The chairman of the Ganong Bros. Ltd. chocolate company, David Ganong, said he vacationed with Oland less than a week ago.

"I spent three days fishing with him in the Northwest Miramichi (River), using all of his fishing gear, and there would be no reason to suspect that Dick would have had a health problem at that time," Ganong said in an interview from St. Stephen, N.B.

"He fished, walked, did everything the rest of us did and appeared to be in very good health."

Ganong said he was stunned by the news of Oland's death.

"I thought that my assistant had given me the wrong name. I just couldn't believe that Dick had passed. It was quite a shock."

Oland was the younger brother of Moosehead executive chairman Derek Oland, and was a former vice-president of Saint John Shipbuilding and Dry Dock. More recently, he was president of the investment firm Far End Corp., according to the Saint John Board of Trade.

Richard Oland was best known as a competitive yachtsman who also served as president of the board of the 1985 Canada Summer Games in Saint John.

In Halifax, Nova Scotia Premier Darrell Dexter said he was saddened after hearing of Richard Oland's death.

"It's just a very profound shock to hear this news," Dexter said Friday.

"Mr. Oland was of course a major force in the business world of Atlantic Canada. He will be greatly missed and we extend our condolences to his family and friends."

The Oland family can trace its brewing roots to 1867, when John and Susannah Oland started The Army and Navy Brewery in Halifax. The company was later sold, but the family returned to the business, eventually setting up the Maritime Brewing and Malting Co. in the port city.

After the Halifax explosion destroyed the family's plant in 1917, George Oland -- Richard's grandfather -- moved to New Brunswick, where he bought another brewery with the insurance money.

In 1928, the Oland family bought another brewery in Saint John, which is where Moosehead has been brewed since 1931.