Police officers in Stellarton don’t forget Kevin Martin.
The teen went missing in 1994 and his body was found six years later in Burnside, a rural portion of Colchester County. On May 19, the 25th anniversary of his disappearance, a bench was unveiled in Stellarton with family and friends.
Const. Paul Veenhuis of the Stellarton Police Department was there because it’s a case that matters to him even though he didn’t join the police department until years after Kevin’s disappearance.
Every day police officers for the Town of Stellarton walk in they go by a plaque presented in the past by Kevin’s mother Bonnie Thomas. And every time he passes it, Veenhuis thinks about the teen.
“That’s not a common occurrence for our town,” he says of the murder.
While the murder investigation is officially in the hands of the RCMP because of where Martin’s body was found, Stellarton police maintain an interest in it and frequently review the giant file of information they have about the case.
About five years ago Veenhuis made a post online about the cold case, which seemed to revive interest in the community. Even now, about every four to five months police receive a tip about the case. Sometimes it’s something new. Usually it’s something they’ve heard before. Veenhuis takes it all down and forwards what’s applicable to the murder on to the RCMP. Still there has been no conclusion to the case.
“It is frustrating for us. Somebody out there knows what happened obviously.”
As a father, Veenhuis can only imagine the anguish that Kevin’s mother must go through and calls her frequently to let her know they’re still actively investigating it.
“Our wishes and hopes are that it does get solved,” he said.
But he knows that’s dependent on someone coming forward.
