The family of a teenage boy murdered on a northeast Calgary street last week is pleading for information from the public as they search for answers.
Sixteen-year-old Carter Spivak-Villeneuve was found dead just before 1:30 a.m. on Friday, Aug. 1 in the northeast community of Abbeydale.
Officers arrived on Abergale Drive NE, just steps away from the teen’s home, for reports of a person in medical distress.
Spivak-Villeneuve was pronounced dead at the scene and an autopsy later determined his manner of death to be homicide.
The teenager’s family says they are devastated by the loss of their son.
“It has left an empty void in many hearts for family and friends. Carter was very caring, giving and loyal. He had a smile that would light up any dark room. He had ambitions that will never come to fruition because his life was cut so short,” they said in a statement released via the Calgary Police Service (CPS).
Investigators say they’ve been putting in the hours working to collect CCTV footage and other evidence related to the boy’s death, but they are still trying to get a hold of several residents in the area that might have been away over the August long weekend.
“We know it’s summertime and people could be gone,” says Staff Sgt. Sean Gregson of the CPS Homicide Unit. “But if people reach back out to us, we appreciate that.”
Police are urging anyone in the neighbourhood with surveillance footage who hasn’t spoken to then to contact them immediately. Specifically, officers are looking for anyone with dashcam or CCTV footage from the 300 block of Abergale Drive NE on Aug. 1 between midnight and 1:30 a.m. to reach out.
As well, anyone with information about Spivak-Villeneuve, his associates, or any discussion about Carter’s death, whether on Snapchat, TikTok, or other platforms, is asked to provide this information to police.
“The victim was 16-years-old, and this opens the door to social media platforms and communication platforms that we might not be aware of in terms of people’s usernames or handles online,” says Gregson. “If there is information being shared or any potential theories, if people reach out we’d want to talk to them.”
Anyone with information is asked to contact Calgary police at 403-266-1234. Tips can also be made anonymously to CrimeStoppers.