It was supposed to be a safe, affordable home for Ontarians with nowhere else to go. But inside, it was horrifying.
On the day the first family of Windsor’s West Ward moved in, it became the site of a horrific murder-suicide.
In the wee hours of January 20, 2017, the four-bedroom, two-bathroom property, dubbed the “Noon House” on account of the time it came fully furnished with furniture for the whole family to sleep in, was the target of a vicious attack.
The shooter, 24-year-old Michael Zehnder, burst into the home and immediately began shooting his two roommates, 24-year-old Andrew Zehnder Jr. and 24-year-old Michael Zehnder Sr., six times in their living rooms, on their kitchen floor and in their bedroom.
They were both dead by the time police arrived, just a day earlier, but for the rest of the victims, there was no end to the shock and pain.
More than a year later, Zehnder is behind bars. Convicted of four counts of first-degree murder and two counts of attempted murder, he is being held at the Windsor West Detention Centre.
The crime scene at the Noon House, where Michael Zehnder killed his roommates, Andrew Zehnder Jr. and Michael Zehnder Sr. on Jan. 20, 2017. (Submitted by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police)
Andrew Zehnder Jr. and Michael Zehnder Sr., who were living with Andrew Jr.’s grandparents in a family house, found themselves the targets of a murder-suicide. (Submitted by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police)
“As I think about, this is not only our community, but it is our country, the people that lived here, this isn’t how we do it,” said Const. Jason Michalyshen, public affairs officer at the Windsor Police Service.
“It’s a very sad story and we’re just trying to get this man off the street so he can no longer hurt people.”
Sudden death
The crime scene in the Noon House on Jan. 20, 2017. (Submitted