The family of the victim of a fatal stabbing say they will be living in fear as long as the man convicted of the crime is on the run.
Daniel Creagh was sentenced to seven years for the fatal stabbing of 35-year-old Joe Gauthier, a father of four, in March 2018, Creagh was released to the halfway house after serving two-thirds of his sentence.
Gauthier’s former partner and mother to two of his four children, Jessica Moraes, said Creagh walked away in late June.
“He’s still technically supposed to be serving his sentence even though it’s in a halfway house. He’s still supposed to be reporting there. He’s still supposed to be under these conditions. And he’s decided not to follow them now,” Moraes said.
Corrections Canada has issued a Canada-wide warrant for his arrest, but Gauthier’s mother, Darlene Hogue, said she believes he’s too dangerous to be free in the community.
All four of the Gauthier children live in Greater Victoria, and Moraes is worried they could come face-to-face with their father’s killer after she found out he spent three days in the city after fleeing the Lower Mainland.
“He ran three blocks within my house. So my children would take the bus to school and transfer one block from there. Three days that he could have ran into them. It’s not fair,” Moraes said.
Moraes says the local police departments were not notified when Creagh initially walked away from his halfway house, violating the conditions of his release.
The family found out where he was through social media after he posted a picture to Facebook.
“When he had gotten out of jail two weeks later he posted a selfie, who’s next? He’s gotten a tear drop tattoo under his eye. There is zero remorse, and he’s gained over a hundred pounds of muscle. Are you going to tell me that he’s reformed now? And he’s going to lead a law abiding life?”, Moraes said.
The women are hoping by coming forward someone will recognize Creagh, and phone police, putting him back behind bars.
Anyone who sees him is asked to call 911, or Crimestoppers.
Mary Griffin
