Regina murder suspect added to Canada’s most wanted list

A suspect in a Regina murder case has been added to Canada’s top-25 most wanted list.

Daniel (Juma) Drie Atem, who is wanted for first-degree murder in connection to a killing on Broad Street near the General Hospital on July 29, has landed at No. 14 on the BOLO Program list.

According to a release from Regina police in July, officers responded just before 2:30 a.m. to the 2100 block of Broad Street for a report of an injured man. The victim — later identified as Roman Miller — was pronounced dead at the scene by paramedics.

Police arrested the other suspect, Shedrek Samuel, in February.

“After exhausting most all of the investigative avenues in effort to locate and arrest Atem, we submitted the investigation to the BOLO Program for their review and consideration,” Supt. Trent Stevely of the Regina Police Service’s investigative services division said Tuesday afternoon.

The BOLO organization works with police services and Crime Stoppers to amplify wanted criminals across the country using social media, billboards and traditional media.

This is the first time a subject wanted by the Regina Police Service has been chosen for the list.

“ ‘Make his world smaller’ is what we say,” explained Stevely.

Rewards are being offered for those on top of the 25 most wanted list, but there isn’t a reward for Atem right now.

“The first step of amplification has proven successful in the past. Connecting a reward to these subjects and increasing the types of amplification is always being assessed,” said Stevely.

He said it could be reassessed and a reward added later.

BOLO director Max Langlois said during the news conference in Toronto that BOLO will co-ordinate with the Regina Police Service over the next few months to assess if they should implement a reward for tips on Atem’s whereabouts.

“It is not different than what we did last year for the Saskatoon Police Service case of Jonathan Ouellet-Gendron,” Langlois said. “We went incrementally the exact same way.”

Stevely didn’t say where police thought Atem might be and wouldn’t offer any more details about the case.

Toronto Police Chief Myron Demkiw said Tuesday the BOLO Program has made communities safer over the past six years.

“We are not looking for witnesses to testify in court, and thanks to the guarantee of anonymity provided by Crime Stoppers, we aren’t even looking for your name,” Demkiw said. “We just need the tips that lead us to these suspects.”

Up to $1 million in rewards is being offered to tipsters who help police arrest the suspects on the wanted list.

However, Langlois said there isn’t a cash prize for tips leading to Atem’s arrest.

“But this may change,” Langlois said. “Every case needs to start somewhere and we have incorporated a lot of new cases to the top 25 (Tuesday) that are in the same situation with no rewards.

“I’m not saying there will be rewards; I’m saying there can be a reward. We are going to see first with the Regina Police Service what tips and information come with this announcement.”

Atem is described as being 6-foot-3 and around 140 pounds with black hair and brown eyes. Anyone who sees him should call the Regina Police Service at 306-777-6500 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.

Ouellet-Gendron currently sits at No. 13 on Canada’s most wanted list. One of the suspects in a May 2022 murder in Saskatoon, Ouellet-Gendron has been on the list since May of last year.

Up to $50,000 is being offered for tips leading to Ouellet-Gendron’s arrest.

He was charged after 29-year-old Brandon Baxandall was killed at his Saskatoon apartment on Melrose Avenue.

— With files from 980 CJME’s Lisa Schick