Stellarton, Nova Scotia — Nova Scotia is offering a reward in the amount of up to $150k for information leading to the conviction of whoever is responsible for the homicide of Kevin Wesley Martin.
On May 19, 1994, Kevin Wesley Martin was reported missing from his residence in Stellarton, Nova Scotia. A missing person investigation was conducted by the Stellarton Police Service, however, he was never found.
On November 13, 2000, commercial loggers working in the Burnside area of Colchester County discovered Kevin's remains buried in a shallow grave. Physical evidence found at the scene established that his death was a homicide.
Kevin was 13 the day in May he had run away from his house on MacKay Street in Stellarton. It wasn’t the first time he had left home without permission and his family had no reason to believe it would be his last. According to retired Stellarton police officer Hugh Muir, who became involved in the case early, Martin had fallen in with a bad crowd about six months to a year before this day. Muir was familiar with Kevin because he had gone to school with Muir’s older boys, and remembers him as a nice, polite kid.
Talking to The New Glasgow News, Kevin's mother Bonnie Thomas recalls how Kevin had been bullied at school and craved acceptance. He wanted to be part of the cool kids and so when they skipped school, he did too.
"He was a great kid. He just got in with the wrong group of kids," Thomas said. "He was a follower."
Sometimes, Bonnie Thomas watches a court case come to conclusion on television and hears the family of a murder victim testify that they forgive their loved one's killer.
She swears she couldn't do it.
Certainly not for the people she believes murdered her 13-year-old son Kevin Martin.
"God forgive me for saying that, but that's how I feel," she says. "There will never be any forgiveness from me to them."
A few years earlier Kevin had also lost his older brother Olin in a house fire. They had only been 10-months apart in age and shared a room. The fire was determined to be have been caused accidentally, but had a lasting effect on Kevin.
"I don't think Kevin ever got over losing Olin," says their mother.
Kevin went missing on May 19, 1994 – 28 long years ago. And while forgiveness may never happen, Thomas believes justice should.
"There's no reason they should be walking free," she says of the person or persons responsible for his death.
The police believe they know who did it, but they lack the evidence to prove it. They believe there are people who have information that could result in an arrest and possible charges. Anyone with information regarding the person responsible for the homicide of Kevin Martin should call 1-888-710-9090.
The reward is payable in Canadian funds and will be apportioned as deemed just by the Minister of Justice for the Province of Nova Scotia.
