In 2020, Hamilton hit a 30-year high for homicides

There has been a record 17 homicides investigations in Hamilton in 2020, the highest in at least 30 years.

The number overtakes the previous high of 16 cases, which Hamilton has hit twice since 1990: in 1999 and 1995. In the last decade the number of homicides per year has been as low as five (in 2011). There were 13 homicides last year and the year before.

Hamilton police say there is no specific reason for the increase. No homicides are believed to be connected to each other.

The homicides include at least seven fatal shootings and eight fatal stabbings. In two cases police have not released cause of death. In Hamilton, homicides and attempted murders are investigated by the major crime unit.

The cases range from intimate partner violence, to a drive-by shooting, to random attacks, to mistaken identity. Charges have been laid in 10 of the cases.

There have also been murders that involve Hamilton people, but did not happen in the city. Most notably, there was the July 10 slaying of Hamilton Mob boss Pat Musitano, gunned down in a Burlington parking lot amid a traditional organized crime war. No one has been charged in Musitano's murder.

Here is a look at Hamilton's 17 homicide cases of 2020:

• Jan. 29: David Stevens, 46, was fatally shot in his Harvey Street rooming house. Hamilton police say the true target was another tenant who wasn't home. Shajjad Idrish is charged with first-degree murder.

• March 2: Giorgio Barresi, 42, was fatally shot in the driveway of his Stoney Creek home. The husband, father and realtor had historical ties to organized crime, but the motive is not known. No one has been charged.

• March 8: Jahmal Thomas, 39, and Rhonda Homsombath, 25, were killed when two gunmen fired shots inside a busy after-hours bar. Police believe Thomas was the target. Homsombath was an innocent victim. No one has been charged and police say they've had limited co-operation from some witnesses.

• May 16: Gladys Little, 79, was killed after answering her seventh-floor apartment unit door to a stranger at 187 Park St. S. Larissa Shingebis is charged with first-degree murder.

• May 30: Darren Buskey, 44, was fatally shot in the parking lot of his Hamilton Mountain apartment building after an altercation during a drug deal. David Pryce is charged with first-degree murder.

• July 10: Matar Abouchere, 27, was killed when he was shot while driving on the Red Hill Valley Parkway. The shots were fired from a dark-coloured SUV. No one has been charged.

• July 15: Myah Larmond, 17, was fatally shot at small gathering inside a home on St. Matthews Avenue. Police say the shooting was accidental. Devante Skye-Davis is charged with manslaughter.

• July 19: Ali Mohummad, 19, was fatally stabbed after he and a group of young men were ambushed in a Limeridge Road West parking lot. Two teens, who cannot be identified under the Youth Criminal Justice Act, are charged with second-degree murder.

• July 26: Brock Beck, 20, was fatally stabbed in the driveway of a Binbrook Road home. Police believe the attack was fuelled by road rage. Four men are charged with second-degree murder: Albin Gashi, Cam-Thai Khath, Petar Kunic and Thomas Vasquez.

• Sept. 21: Amy Hager, 20, was killed her King Street East apartment. Her boyfriend, 39-year-old Shaun Chiasson, is charged with second-degree murder.

• Sept. 27: Zoran Benasich, 60, was fatally stabbed in the parking lot of a Cannon Street East convenience store. His girlfriend Melena Pheasant, 36, is charged with second-degree murder.

• Oct. 1: Michael Gallo, 34, was fatally stabbed in the backyard of his west Hamilton residence. A man was seen crossing the street and running into the backyard before the stabbing. The motive is unknown and no one has been charged.

• Oct. 6, 2020: Remains were found at Windermere Basin Park. A month later, police confirmed they were Jammar Allison, a 26-year-old Toronto man who had been abducted from an Etobicoke parking lot on June 1, 2018. Police believe he was likely killed around the time of the abduction, however, his death is counted in the Hamilton police 2020 statistics because the homicide investigation only began with the discovery of his remains. No one has been charged.

• Nov. 10, 2020: Andrew Ainscow was fatally stabbed in an alleyway just west of James Street South. Police allege the stabbing was one of several random attacks in the city that night. Keith Overholt is charged with first-degree murder. He is also facing two charges of attempted murder for the attempted stabbing of a 39-year-old man and a violent, random attack on a 46-year-old woman.

• Nov. 13, 2020: Catharine and Peter Ambrose, both 63, were stabbed inside their West 31st Street home. Peter survived, but Catherine died the following day in hospital. Their son, Devon Ambrose, 30, is charged with second-degree murder, aggravated assault, two counts of assault a peace officer with a weapon and resist arrest.

• Dec. 13: Michael White, 42, was stabbed on East 27th Street and later died in hospital. Two men were seen getting out of a blue Kia Soul just before the stabbing. White had been at a Concession Street apartment shortly before where police allege a woman had been confined and assaulted. Angelo Miller is wanted in that assault. No one has been charged in the homicide.

In addition to this year's homicides, there have been several notable cases in court, while many trials were delayed because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Among the delays is the second-degree murder trial of Justin Dumpfrey, accused of fatally stabbing his ex-girlfriend Holly Hamilton. A mistrial was declared on the first day of the start of the first trial in January 2020.

On Dec. 14, John Josipovic was sentenced to life without parole eligibility for 13 years after being convicted of second-degree murder in the 2013 shooting death of Lou Malone, a former Hells Angel. Two days later John's brother, Mato Josipovic - in custody since his 2013 arrest - was sentenced to time served plus a day after being convicted of manslaughter in the homicide.

It was the second trial for the brothers. Both had previously been found guilty of second-degree murder but had those verdicts overturned on appeal. John admitted he pulled the trigger, shooting Malone in the head, on Kenilworth Avenue North after his brother had been beaten up earlier that night over a debt owed by John.

On Dec. 4, a jury found 70-year-old Wayne Bell guilty of first-degree murder and arson in the death of his estranged girlfriend Marilyn Mitton. The 66-year-old was found face down in a bleach- and water-filled bathtub with seven stab wounds on July 31, 2016. Her apartment had been set on fire.

A verdict is expected in the new year in the Jeremy Hall murder trial. He's accused of shooting Billy Mason nearly 15 years ago and burning his body. Hall was convicted of first-degree murder in 2013, but the verdict was overturned on appeal in 2019. The new, judge-alone trial was paused for five months in 2020 due to the pandemic.

The case of two former Hamilton paramedics accused of not taking seriously the injuries of Yosif Al-Hasnawi as he died of a gunshot wound is ongoing. Christopher Marchant and Steve Snively are accused of failing to provide the necessaries of life.

Nicole O'Reilly is a Hamilton-based reporter covering crime and justice for The Spectator. Reach her via email: noreilly@thespec.com