American Chocolatier Behind Brutal Killing of Canadian Millionaires, Authorities Say

An American chocolatier has been charged in connection to the murder of two Canadian millionaires in the Caribbean. 

Quebec entrepreneur Daniel Langlois and his wife Dominique Marchand were found dead in a charred-out vehicle near a luxury “eco-resort” on the tropical island of Dominica.

Langlois and Marchand were enjoying a nice day on the island when they were “ambushed” by hitmen who shot them and then torched their car, the Daily Mail reported the Dominica Police said. The inferno that engulfed the car reportedly destroyed the bodies to the extent they are impossible to identify, forcing police to rely on “circumstantial evidence” to connect them to Langloid and Marchand. 

“This type of terrible and brutal crime cannot be ignored and we cannot allow those responsible to get away with it,” Dominica's Minister of National Security Rayburn Blackmoore said on national radio. ”The government will provide investigators with everything they need to solve this crime.”

Police have detained four people in the death of the two wealthy Canadians, including American chocolatier Jonathan Lehrer. 

Leher owns a 53-acre chocolate and coffee plantation on the island near the resort Langlois was developing. The businessmen and the Langlois had been in a feud for years over a road that passed through the chocolatier's estate, court documents report the Journal de Montreal. Lehrer objected to the use road, which was public, being used by Langlois for his resort.

According to court documents viewed by the Daily Mail, Lehrer would routinely take action to try and block the road. This includes dumping boulders onto the road, digging trenches, and putting construction equipment on the side saying workers trying to get to the resort couldn’t pass. Reviews left for Lehrer’s estate say travelers who ventured onto the public road were at times followed and screamed at. 

Lehrer’s father spoke to Journal de Montreal saying he doesn’t believe the allegations. 

“Jonathan is a successful businessman, not a murderer,” Robert Lehrer said JDM. “We are very close, and he is not a violent man at all. I have a hard time believing it.”

Langlois had made his fortune creating software companies, in particular one that provided 3D animation for movies like Men in Black, Star Wars: The Phantom Menace, and Jurassic Park. The resort the couple had built in Dominica included mountain-top accommodations that were completely off-grid.  

Three others are expected to be charged in connection to the crime including Lehrer’s wife.