Murder charge laid in death of Vancouver Island senior

A view of a lighthouse on the Inside Passage from aboard the B.C. Ferries "Northern Expedition" between Port Hardy on Vancouver Island and Prince Rupert, B.C., on Thursday Aug. 30, 2018. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Colin Perkel

Homicide investigators say a man has been charged in the killing of an 84-year-old man on Vancouver Island.

John Hugh Jensen, 54, is facing one count of second-degree murder in the death Real Menard in the northern Vancouver Island community of Port Hardy, the B.C. RCMP announced Wednesday.

Menard was found seriously injured on a path in the 8800 block of Park Drive shortly after 4:30 p.m. on Oct. 6, 2024.

He was taken to hospital where he later died. At the time, investigators said the victim was likely assaulted.

The Vancouver Island Integrated Major Crime Unit was called to lead the investigation, while the B.C. Coroners Service worked to determine the circumstances that led to the man’s death.

Police say the B.C. Prosecution Service approved the second-degree murder charge against Jensen on March 6.

He was arrested in the northern B.C. community of Prince Rupert and remains in police pending his next court appearance.

According to online court records, Jensen, who was born in 1972, is expected to appear in a Port Alberni courtroom on March 16.