Elderly victim of Pickering homicide identified

Police say 83-year-old Eleanor Dony was gardening outside her Pickering home when she was fatally stabbed. Melissa Duggan reports.

A senior who died following what police are calling an unprovoked stabbing outside her Pickering home late last week has been identified as 83-year-old Eleanor Doney.

Durham police say Doney was gardening outside her residence on Lynn Heights Drive on May 29 at around 3 p.m. when she was approached by an unknown male and stabbed “multiple” times.

She was rushed to a trauma centre for treatment but later died of her injuries, they said.

In a rare move, police had issued shelter-in place alerts as they searched for the suspect, who was arrested around 8:30 p.m. that evening without incident at his home.

A 14-year-old boy, from Pickering, has been charged with first-degree murder. He cannot be identified under the provisions of the Youth Criminal Justice Act.

In a statement, released on Tuesday afternoon, Doney’s family thanked the community for its “outpouring of love and support during this difficult time.”

“We especially want to thank the first responders for all of their efforts. We take comfort in the fact that she was a woman of strong Christian faith,” they wrote.

Police also extended their “sincere gratitude for the cooperation of our community members in providing information and video surrounding the circumstances of this tragic event,” adding that they continue to appeal to anyone who may have information, even if they believe it to be insignificant, to come forward.

Investigators, meanwhile, are also reminding the public that it is illegal to post photos or share identifying information about young offenders as per the YCJA. Sharing these images are a criminal offence, police said.

“We are asking you to instead turn those videos over to police and use the social media space as a place to remember Eleanor,” they said.

Anyone with further information about this incident is asked to contact Det. Barrette at 1-888-579-1520, ext. 5412, or Det. Const. Hilliard from the Homicide Unit at 1-888-579-1520, ext. 5413, or Crime Stoppers anonymously.