The search for a missing St. Albert senior has ended in tragedy for the community with a lot of questions still needing to be answered.
Beryl Musila, 28, of St. Albert, has been charged with first degree murder and indignity to human remains.
The body of 75-year-old Ronald Worsfold was discovered in a rural area of Parkland County near Stony Plain. He was last seen at a St. Albert residence on Friday but then went uncharacteristically out of contact with his family members, leaving them to file a police report.
They, along with many of his friends, neighbours and co-workers are now left reeling after an autopsy confirmed the manner of death was homicide.
Worsfold’s daughter Sandy asked how something so terrible could happen to such a good guy. She said that her dad was as nice as they come.
“He absolutely was. He’s just a very kind, helping person. He would help anybody for anything. You call… he would be there. He was such a strong member of the St. Albert community, volunteering for various things,” she said. “He was just that type of a guy.”
Dan Massick said that Ron was always out doing chores and maintenance, ready to lend a helping hand to anyone who lived in the Mission Avenue apartment building where he was the caretaker.
“I’ve known him for quite a few years. He’s a very nice guy, very generous. He’d help anybody. He was always out cutting grass or doing something,” he said.
Worsfold might have been of retirement age but he certainly wasn’t prone to being idle. He was one of the busiest and most pleasant fellows that you were ever likely to meet. Apart from his duties as a site manager, he also worked at a local gas station, and often Rogers Place too. What’s more, said Sandy, he did it all with a smile.
“Long-term residents of St. Albert … they probably have all crossed his path at some point or other, especially at the Petro Can. He was the smiling face that you would see there. There was a brightness that just glowed from him. He was such an extremely positive person,” she said.
“He would put a smile on everybody’s face. The loss is not just to us; it’s to the community of St. Albert of which he’s been a resident for so many years. I don’t even remember him living anywhere but St. Albert. He was a great person.”
She emphasized how much the family wants everyone to remember Ronald Worsfold for the kind and generous man that he was in his life. She expressed her and her family’s great gratitude to the RCMP for the swift and sure response that its members took in this case.
“Considering the circumstances, it hasn’t been easy for any of us. It’s been a difficult couple of days. It was their quick actions that had provided us some comfort in finding his body so quickly. They were so quick, so responsive. We have been nothing but grateful to them for their service.”
Worsfold’s disappearance came in the middle of some other recent suspicious circumstances. In an odd turn of events, he had reported his vehicle stolen only days prior to his disappearance. His light brown 2007 Toyota Corolla was recovered late Monday morning from an undisclosed location in Edmonton. Investigators have since confirmed that the vehicle theft was not connected with his death or disappearance.
Musila is scheduled to make an appearance in Sherwood Park Provincial Court today.
