A Burnaby man is facing murder charges related to a body found in a popular Lower Mainland outdoor area.
On Friday, the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team announced a charge of second degree murder against Ryan Jack Armstrong, 29, of Burnaby, related to the discovery of a woman’s body at Stave Lake in Mission earlier this week.
Armstrong, who has no criminal record and is not known to police, is also facing a charge of indignity to a human body.
“It’s our belief at this point they were known to each other, and until we positively ID [the victim] and say ‘That’s who we’re dealing with,’ then I can’t get into what their relationship is,” said IHIT spokesperson Sgt. Stephanie Ashton, adding it may as early as next week before the woman can be positively identified.
She also didn’t have any details on why the alleged suspect was in the Mission area, or where the murder took place, noting it’s a detail that will be part of the investigation.
“It’s a really heavily travelled area for people who like the outdoors… there’s people from all over the Lower Mainland that go up there,” Ashton said.
Mission RCMP were called to the area of Florence Lake Service Road just after 5 p.m. on March 29 after receiving a report of found human remains.
It was at that point IHIT investigators took over the case and moved quickly to identify a suspect. IHIT also couldn’t say where Armstrong was arrested.
“An important piece to this investigation was the support of the public who came forward with information that has aided in the rapid progression from initial investigation to charge approval,” Ashton said.
Armstrong appeared in court Thursday and will remain in custody until his next court appearance on April 21.
