I travelled to Dominica to learn what happened to Daniel Langlois and Dominique Marchand
In December of 2023, I learned of the brutal murders of two beloved Montrealers, who were well known and admired in Quebec’s creative circles.
Daniel Langlois and Dominique Marchand may not have been household names throughout Canada, but their achievements and projects received worldwide attention and recognition.
In the 1980s, Langlois created groundbreaking tools for animation and visual effects. He brought human emotion to the big screen through animated characters, as some of the tools he developed were used to create visual effects in films like "The Matrix" and "Jurassic Park."
His vision generated tremendous excitement for filmmakers and software companies. Langlois eventually sold his company, Softimage, in 1994 and went on to invest his US$130 million earnings into many creative and environmental endeavours.
He was awarded a Scientific and Technical Oscar and named to the Order of Canada.
W5 travels to Dominica to investigate the brutal murders of Daniel Langlois and Dominique Marchand -- two beloved Montrealers who were well known and admired in Quebec’s creative circles (Source: Daniel Langlois Foundation)
In the days that followed their murders, I reported on the violent and tragic circumstances surrounding their deaths, though there were many questions left unanswered.
This prompted a CTV W5 investigation and ultimately my travel to the lush Caribbean island of Dominica in February 2024, with a producer and cameraman.
We arrived on a Sunday, marking the beginning of a Carnival celebration. Loud thumping music and people in colourful costumes dancing filled the streets as I made my way across the island, after a long flight, a stopover in Barbados and a drive from the airport along winding roads.
I was immediately struck by the rugged landscape and the sight of those who had come to visit, including divers, hikers and kayakers. The island truly is an adventure seekers’ paradise.
Everyone seemed to know something
When we started to ask people about the murder investigation and what happened to Daniel Langlois and Dominique Marchand, two things quickly became evident: one, everyone knew them and of their dream project, Coulibri Ridge, a sustainable eco-resort with 14 luxury suites in the volcanic hills above the southern coastal village of Soufriere; and two, everyone knew there had been a bitter feud over a public road that led to the resort.
Many of the details are found in a 2018 court case, in the wake of American millionaire Jonathan Lehrer’s efforts to block access on the road with boulders and a trench. Lehrer was frustrated that this public road passed right through his 18th century property. Langlois won that court case and access to his resort.
Everyone we encountered in Dominica, an island of just 70,000 people, seemed to know something, including the driver in our taxi, a hotel attendant, a dive shop owner, even someone who ran a guest house in Soufriere.
This is how we came to learn of a German tourist who had come to Dominica for a yoga and freediving retreat in November of 2023. He had been on a hike the day Langlois and Marchand disappeared: Nov. 30, 2023.
He agreed to speak to us by phone about his encounters, and told us that when he approached Lehrer’s property -- a sprawling heritage estate that used to be a cocoa and coffee plantation -- he was turned away. Thomas, whose full name we've withheld at his request, recounted the conversation. “He said I can't pass. This is private property. I have to go back,” he told CTV W5.
Genevieve Beauchemin speaks with Thomas by phone about what happened when he approached Lehrer’s property (CTV W5).
Thomas said he diverted and found another route, and it was from there that he heard gun shots.
“When I was covered by the trees, I heard shootings, so, like, twice or triple time, double shooting. So, like, from a pistol, or from a gun,” he said.
After he turned and tried to find a new hiking road altogether, he encountered a man who yelled and told him to leave again. Less than an hour later, he told me about what he saw and heard from the lower village of Soufriere: “I saw black smoke. I heard explosions, two explosions, very loud. So for me, it was like dynamite."
The bodies of Daniel Langlois and Dominique Marchand were found in a burnt vehicle in December of 2023 (Source: St. Vincent Times)
The German tourist identified the man he last encountered was Robert Snyder Jr.
We learned Snyder had just arrived in Dominica two weeks before the murders and was staying with Jonathan Lehrer.
The two American men have now been charged in the murders.
Police photos of Jonathan Lehrer (left) and Robert Snyder Jr. (Supplied)
While investigating leads on the island we also learned of a local farmer who walked the public road between Lehrer’s property and the Coulibri Ridge resort.
We waited on the contentious road to see if Neville Henderson would speak to us at the end of his work day and he offered to share many of his own experiences.
Neville Henderson speaks with CTV W5 on the contentious road.
He told our producer, “it was a nightmare. It was a nightmare. It was a continual thing, mostly every day… they just didn't want anybody to pass on that particular road because they're thinking it's part of their property, but it was never a part of their property, it was a public road. “
He also told us that he warned police that passing on the road had become a terrifying ordeal and shared a video of one such incident involving the accused American’s wife, Victoria Lehrer.
We learned many more things on the island, seeking answers from local authorities and grasping the desperate hope by friends that there will be justice for Daniel Langlois and Dominique Marchand.
We also learned of the determination to keep their legacy alive, to carry on with their projects, including keeping Coulibri Ridge open to guests.
Watch W5's documentary 'The Millionaire Murders' in our video player at the top of this article
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Poilievre kicked out of Commons after calling Prime Minister Justin Trudeau 'wacko'
Testy exchanges between the prime minister and his chief opponent ended with the Opposition leader and one of his MPs being ejected from the House of Commons on Tuesday -- and the rest of Conservative caucus walking out of the chamber in protest.
Baby, grandparents among 4 people killed in wrong-way police chase on Ontario's Hwy. 401
A police chase which started with a liquor store robbery in Bowmanville Monday night ended in tragedy some 20 minutes later when a suspect fleeing police entered Highway 401 in the wrong direction and caused a pileup which killed an infant and the child's grandparents, as well as the suspect, investigators say.
BREAKING Hosting Vancouver's FIFA World Cup games could cost half a billion dollars
Hosting seven games in Vancouver during the 2026 FIFA World Cup could cost more than half a billion dollars, according to an updated estimate provided Tuesday.
Man dies after suffering cardiac arrest while waiting in ER, widow wants investigation
When an ambulance took David Lippert to the hospital in March of 2023, the 68-year-old Kitchener, Ont., executive was hoping to find out why he was feeling weak and unable to walk. Some 24 hours later, he was found unresponsive in the ER.
Sword-wielding man attacks passersby in London, killing a 14-year-old boy and injuring 4 others
A man wielding a sword attacked members of the public and police officers in a northeast London suburb Tuesday, killing a 14-year-old boy and injuring four other people, British authorities said.
Freeland previews omnibus budget bill, proposed capital gains tax change left out
Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland will be tabling yet another omnibus bill to pass a sweeping range of measures promised in her April 16 federal budget, though left out of the legislation will be the government's proposed capital gains tax change.
WATCH Arnold Schwarzenegger spotted filming in Elora, Ont.
The name of the project has not been officially released although it’s widely believed to be the Netflix series FUBAR.
Conservatives push motion calling for Carney to testify, say it's about 'accountability'
The federal Conservatives made good on their promise to push for former Bank of Canada governor Mark Carney to testify before MPs, resulting in a heated political debate in Ottawa on Tuesday.
London Drugs stores remain closed, 'cybersecurity incident' may have breached personal data
London Drugs says it is working with third-party security experts as the company tries to reopen dozens of stores across Western Canada that were shuttered by a cybersecurity incident Sunday.
Local Spotlight
Quebec police officer anonymously donates kidney, changes schoolteacher's life
A police officer on Montreal's South Shore anonymously donated a kidney that wound up drastically changing the life of a schoolteacher living on dialysis.
Canada's oldest hat store still going strong after 90 years
Since 1932, Montreal's Henri Henri has been filled to the brim with every possible kind of hat, from newsboy caps to feathered fedoras.
Road closed in Oak Bay, B.C., so elephant seal can cross
Police in Oak Bay, B.C., had to close a stretch of road Sunday to help an elephant seal named Emerson get safely back into the water.
B.C. breweries take home awards at World Beer Cup
Out of more than 9,000 entries from over 2,000 breweries in 50 countries, a handful of B.C. brews landed on the podium at the World Beer Cup this week.
Kitchener family says their 10-year-old needs life-saving drug that cost $600,000
Raneem, 10, lives with a neurological condition and liver disease and needs Cholbam, a medication, for a longer and healthier life.
Haida Elder suing Catholic Church and priest, hopes for 'healing and reconciliation'
The lawyer for a residential school survivor leading a proposed class-action defamation lawsuit against the Catholic Church over residential schools says the court action is a last resort.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
Fergus, Ont. man feels nickel-and-dimed for $0.05 property tax bill
A property tax bill is perplexing a small townhouse community in Fergus, Ont.
Twins from Toronto were Canada's top two female finishers at this year's Boston Marathon
When identical twin sisters Kim and Michelle Krezonoski were invited to compete against some of the world’s most elite female runners at last week’s Boston Marathon, they were in disbelief.