A highly respected, executive chef was weeks away from realizing his dream of opening his own restaurant when he was violently killed. The case became a true whodunnit as homicide detectives followed a complicated trail of evidence. Join senior crime reporter Nancy Hixt as she shares how investigators cracked the case and uncovered the senseless motive behind Chef Christophe Herblin’s murder in 'Shattered Dreams.'
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00:00This program is rated 14 plus and contains scenes of violence and mature subject matter.
00:08Viewer discretion is advised.
00:14So alarm was activated.
00:16You attended and you see that someone's broken in.
00:21City police!
00:23I never wanted to encounter that, right?
00:25Like I never wished that upon anybody.
00:30It doesn't make sense. He's an average everyday person, truly innocent victim.
00:36It was just like a bomb had been dropped on my entire life.
00:40He worked hard his entire life trying to make our lives better.
00:46You have possible forensics, you have possible witnesses, and you keep running into Roblox.
00:54It was just so senseless. Just so senseless.
00:58You never think that anything like that would ever happen to you until it does.
01:03Welcome to Crime Beat. I'm Anthony Robart.
01:09Tonight, a sudden and violent attack on a beloved French chef left investigators puzzled.
01:15With no obvious motive or suspects, detectives followed a complicated trail of evidence to uncover what led to the senseless murder.
01:24Here now is Nancy Hicks with Shattered Dreams.
01:33A rookie patrol officer was just starting his shift at 6am on a particularly frigid morning in March of 2020.
01:42That's when a call to 911 alerted police to a stabbing at a Northwest Calgary strip mall.
01:49Constable Martin, who was my colleague at the time, he also took the call with me.
01:55So we ran downstairs. We ran to our vehicles.
01:58With lights and sirens on, they battled icy roads and managed to arrive at the scene within 6 minutes.
02:07We enter the Shell gas station and we see the clerk. She's standing there and she's obviously very frightened.
02:17She has no idea what's going on and she points to this individual, this gentleman on the ground.
02:24I flip him onto his back and I see his pupils dilate.
02:31So I check his pulse right away because I'm not getting any response from him.
02:35I felt two heartbeats and then nothing.
02:39Immediately, I start CPR on him.
02:41I'm trying everything I can. All the skills that I've learned and it just, everything happens so quickly.
02:48What struck me as very, like I still remember to this day, it was that most of the stab wounds were not bleeding.
02:56But there was one under the armpit and it was bleeding profusely.
02:59And as a first responder, I know that's really bad.
03:04It was the first time Constable Jelinek was forced to put his life-saving training into action.
03:11I go through two cycles of CPR.
03:1530 compressions in one cycle, so approximately a minute, give or take, before EMS gets there.
03:22Despite best efforts, the man passed away.
03:26They called time of death not too long after.
03:29It was absolutely devastating and what I remember is looking at my hands.
03:38And I had gloves on, but absolutely just dripping, dripping with blood.
03:44My sergeant seeing me, looking at my hands, he asked me if I'm okay and I said, well, I need a little bit of time, right?
03:50So, he assigns me what's known as a continuity spot behind the building because the whole building is now considered the crime scene.
04:00And there I waited, just thinking about the incident over and over again.
04:05The entire strip mall was marked off with police tape and the homicide unit was called in to investigate.
04:15So, initially, all we had is that the victim had walked by the pumps into the store asking for help.
04:21There were no witnesses to the stabbing.
04:25Police hoped surveillance cameras in the area would shed light on what happened.
04:30Everyone has cameras.
04:32We send people immediately down there.
04:34So, by eight o'clock, we're, as soon as businesses are open, as soon as people are showing up to the strip mall, we're asking them for help.
04:41So, we had Detective Nelson kind of head man our CCTV review.
04:46Basically, anywhere around that area, and including the surrounding neighbourhood area, we canvassed for video.
04:54Because we just don't know, at this point, we still don't know what happened.
04:59The victim still had his wallet.
05:02But investigators said it was too early to rule out robbery as a possible motive.
05:08It's not uncommon for people, especially now, not to have a lot of cash on them.
05:13But sometimes, even $20 is $20.
05:16So, a robbery is still a feasible option.
05:19It could have been a fight.
05:20There could have been a dispute.
05:21We just don't know exactly what happens at this point.
05:25Police used the victim's driver's license to tentatively identify him as 56-year-old Kristof Herblin.
05:33We learned that he was your everyday average Calgarian.
05:37He was a gentleman that was a chef.
05:40He was well-respected in that community.
05:43He was in the process of building and opening his own restaurant in that same strip mall.
05:50And that he was very proud of what he was doing, and he finally accomplished basically his lifelong dream of opening his own restaurant.
05:56And that was probably our biggest hurdle at the beginning, finding out what reason somebody would have to stab this person.
06:06It doesn't make sense.
06:08He's an average, everyday person.
06:11So, what circumstances happened and transpired before that to lead to him being stabbed?
06:15The victim's vehicle was located in front of his would-be restaurant and just a few meters from the gas station where he went for help.
06:26As investigators retraced his steps, they learned about another call to 911 earlier that morning.
06:34In fact, police had met with Kristof Herblin at the strip mall just hours before he was murdered.
06:43Welcome back to Crime Beat.
06:58When a well-respected executive chef is violently killed just outside of his restaurant, police retrace his footsteps and realize the victim had met with police just hours before he was killed.
07:14Here again is Nancy Hicks with Shattered Dreams.
07:21Kristof Herblin's lifelong dream of opening his own restaurant was close to becoming a reality.
07:30The highly esteemed chef was born and raised in France, where he first fell in love with cooking.
07:36He had gone to hotel school at 14, like he left home at 14. European people tend to, if you're going to do the trades, you start early.
07:49And he worked all around Europe.
07:56He moved to Canada in 1988, where he worked at the Pines Resort Hotel in Digby, Nova Scotia, the Fairmont Royal York in Toronto, and then the Hyatt Regency Vancouver.
08:08I ended up getting an apprenticeship at the Hyatt and that's where we met.
08:18You know, cute guy, dark hair and the European way of dressing and the French accent.
08:26I found out he rode motorcycles and I had a dirt bike that I couldn't get running and I asked him if he could help me get it running and of course he did.
08:37He did and then, you know, just, you know, we had a lot of things in common and we were a very good team together because, you know, I really respected him as a chef and then he taught me a lot and he was just fun to be around.
08:57Sharing their passion for cooking, the couple worked on several Hawaiian islands together before settling in Calgary and starting a family.
09:09I just loved being around him and, you know, whether we were watching TV together or he was trying to teach me how to cook something and I would fail miserably at it because I am not nearly as talented.
09:22Everything with him was great.
09:24After years of working at some of Calgary's most exclusive restaurants and golf clubs, he was going to live out his dream of owning a bistro.
09:35It was going to be called Crope Saveur, which is really like a sandwich, like a good open face sandwich.
09:46Very much a French casual bistro, just good food, nothing super high end, just a place you can go and enjoy a good meal and then maybe have like some takeout.
10:02I was happy for him and he took me in between one of my classes when I was in university and he showed me everything.
10:10He brought me inside and it's like this is where like our stoves are going to go and this is where the display case will be.
10:16Display case will be and he was just thrilled, thrilled to be in the experience and work towards his dream.
10:24He was just weeks away from opening day in the spring of 2020 when at about 3 a.m. on Saturday, March 14th.
10:34911 for what town or city.
10:47We were sleeping and he got a notification on his phone that the alarm was going off.
10:56And, you know, we both woke up.
11:01It was like minus 20 and snow and so it was miserable out.
11:07And I just said, you know, you know, be careful.
11:11And, you know, but he was going to go no matter what.
11:17Well, I'm just getting to the site.
11:20I saw some people getting inside and I'm going in.
11:23I'm going in.
11:24OK, so do not go in.
11:25I will bring police on the line for you.
11:30Calgary police, who is the address of the emergency?
11:33It's 3816 Boat Trail Southwest.
11:37And what is your name?
11:40Christoph H-E-R-B-L-I-N.
11:44OK, tell me exactly what happened.
11:47My alarm went off at the store and I'm getting in.
11:52The front window is broken in, but I saw some people going in.
11:56OK, so stay safe and away.
11:57I do not want you approaching the business.
11:59OK, so alarm was activated.
12:01You attended and you see that someone's broken in.
12:04Yeah.
12:05What's the name of the business?
12:07It's called Crocs Traverse.
12:09Perfect.
12:10Now, are any weapons involved or mentioned?
12:13I don't know.
12:14Do you see any lights on inside at this time?
12:17Yeah, there's lights inside.
12:19The lights are on right now because the place is in construction and it's on all the time.
12:26Oh, the building's under construction?
12:28Yeah.
12:29OK.
12:30I saw a police car just pulled in.
12:35What happened next was captured by a responding officer's body-worn camera.
12:41OK, 12-1-8, I am out.
12:44Got visual on the front of the building.
12:46And 12-1-8 confirmed there's glass break on the front.
13:00The officer told dispatch the neighbouring business was a cannabis dispensary.
13:0812-1-8, this is right next door to the spirit leaf.
13:15And just further to that, I think probably they're going, trying to go through the wall.
13:19I don't hear any movement inside the Crocs severe.
13:24With guns drawn, officers entered the restaurant to investigate the break-in.
13:29OK, big room.
13:35City police!
13:41Right.
13:50Yeah.
13:51OK, coming out.
13:55So they ran out the back, maybe?
13:56Yeah, looks like it.
13:59Police spoke with Christophe Herblin inside and learned his business had been targeted several times.
14:06Because I had four break-ins since I was in this place, and then two times they broke through the wall, and once they were able to rub the stone, like so.
14:18Yeah.
14:19Once they were certain there were no offenders in the building, officers left.
14:23Christophe stayed to repair the damage to the front of his business.
14:28So he did his best to secure it, but he also found that the alarm system had been disabled.
14:33So, instead of leaving the business insecure because obviously somebody had made an attempt to get in there, he was going to wait around to the morning until somebody could come secure it and fix the alarm.
14:45It was still so early in the morning that Christophe didn't call his wife to update her.
14:53I woke up, like, with a start at about 6.20, and I had a really bad feeling.
15:05And I tried to phone him.
15:07And, like, I just thought, you know, maybe he wasn't home because, you know, he was down at the police station or, you know, doing something like that.
15:17I phoned him and texted him, and I had nerve from him.
15:21So I went down to the shop, and I drove down 37th Street, and I could see the police tape from, like, a few blocks away.
15:38And then I thought, okay, well, maybe, you know, someone broke in or whatever, and, you know, there was a robbery.
15:46So that's why the police tape was there.
15:49As she got closer, she knew something was very wrong.
15:54And then I drove up, and I parked the truck, and I could see the Mazda in the parking lot.
16:03And I could see the smashed windows.
16:15And I was walking towards it, and then one of the officers came up to me, and I just said, that's my husband's car.
16:30And then he got one of the head people to come over, and we went and sat in our truck, and he said he was with the homicide unit.
16:51And then I, I knew what that meant.
16:58Just hours after his murder, Christoph Herblin's wife and daughter met with investigators at Calgary Police Headquarters.
17:17They did tell me he was stabbed.
17:20Like, I didn't know if he had, like, died in the cold on the, by himself or anything.
17:30So it was, you know, your mind does crazy things.
17:35Yeah, it was just like a bomb had been dropped on my entire life.
17:39Horrible. Like, you can't even, you wonder if things, this is real, if this is just something that, you know, I'm dreaming, or, it's just so surreal.
17:55We need to find out what time he got there, what happened, what she knew, did anything happen?
18:01Did he call her and say something's going on, or something weird is happening?
18:05Or was there an issue with somebody that he's working with?
18:08We really need to try to figure out those answers to try to get an avenue to start looking down.
18:13Investigators said the fatal stabbing made no sense.
18:17They were lacking a motive and suspects.
18:21We had nothing at the scene forensically.
18:24We didn't see any discarded cigarettes.
18:26We didn't see anything, like, where they're grabbing a door, where we might get fingerprints from.
18:30They had gloves on.
18:31So all these traditional techniques become somewhat difficult to deal with.
18:36Well, everything's different now.
18:38The strip mall where Christoph Herblin was murdered is completely empty now.
18:44It's in stark contrast to March of 2020 when the investigation unfolded.
18:53Within hours of the homicide, Calgary police detective Evan Nelson began canvassing area businesses for surveillance video.
19:05He went business to business watching video from multiple cameras and angles.
19:11One thing stood out.
19:13A Dodge Caliber.
19:15It showed up on multiple videos and appeared to be connected with the break-in that happened just before 3am.
19:22Somebody came out of the Caliber, heavy clothing, and then walked right up to the landing area of the liquor store
19:30and grabbed what looked like a brick or a rock from that area and then went back into the alley.
19:37So at that time, what you see is somebody come around the businesses around the Royal Bank, close to the shell as well,
19:45and then come back to the front doors where they, this is at the cafe, where they throw a brick or rock through the front doors
19:54and then enter inside.
20:00A second man got out of the Dodge Caliber and minutes later also went inside the bistro.
20:06Then, at 3.10am, Christoph Herblin arrived while on the phone with 911.
20:13So around 3am on our initial break-in, they end up triggering an alarm that Mr. Herblin has put in.
20:19Once inside, the alarm's triggered, they end up leaving out the back of the business.
20:26One offender gets into the Caliber and the Caliber drives away and the second offender ends up running and hiding.
20:33Five minutes later, at 3.15, police arrived, taking the detective to the events captured in the officer's body-worn camera footage.
20:45Police leave the scene at 3.39am.
20:51After that, Christoph Herblin is seen going inside, where it's believed he patched up the shattered door panels.
20:58He goes outside and sweeps up broken glass, then locks up and gets into his car.
21:05He sat there for about an hour and a half, and just before 6am, goes back into his bistro.
21:12At that time, investigators were surprised to see the Dodge Caliber, involved in the break-in earlier, captured again on CCTV.
21:25So, just before 6am, we had the Dodge Caliber come back.
21:28We have one person getting out in front of the store on the main roadway, walks over to Mr. Herblin's vehicle,
21:36ends up smashing out the front windshield of the vehicle, and casually walks off to the west of the strip mall.
21:44It appeared Christoph Herblin either heard or saw his car being vandalized and left the restaurant.
21:53We have one video that's basically at 6.03am.
21:56We have Mr. Herblin looking at his vehicle, and he's on the driver's side because his vehicle's actually backed on the parking lot.
22:06And at the same time, we have our second offender running towards Mr. Herblin and his vehicle.
22:13And then we lose the video.
22:15The detectives couldn't believe it.
22:17At the exact moment the homicide happened, the camera stopped recording.
22:23The motion just stopped.
22:25So there was about 15 seconds there that would have been very important coverage to see the last moments.
22:36Christoph Herblin was fatally injured in that time.
22:40The autopsy revealed he was stabbed nine times.
22:45Three of those entered the right side of his chest, injuring his lung and liver.
22:51Even with the CCTV evidence, police still had no idea who the two offenders were.
22:59We never had a clear picture.
23:01At that time, between the cameras and such and the temperature outside, between what looked like possibly a balaclava or a mask over the face, it was very difficult to see any kind of facial features.
23:14Investigators believed given the surveillance video evidence, the people who broke into the bistro were also responsible for the murder.
23:24But we could not figure out why they would come back, why Mr. Herblin would be assaulted and stabbed and ultimately killed.
23:33It didn't make any sense.
23:35Initially we thought maybe it was personal because of that.
23:37Are we looking at somebody that's got a beef or a gripe with Mr. Herblin?
23:43Because that was almost like a personal attack on his vehicle, which again, coming back, it doesn't make sense for a typical break and enter.
23:53Police focused on locating the Dodge caliber.
23:56We couldn't get a license plate, but it did have a distinctive gas cap on it.
24:01It allowed us to at least have an identifier for the vehicle.
24:05The body of the car was black and then it had a lighter colored gas cap.
24:10As our analysts started digging into it, we actually did find a Dodge caliber that had been stolen from the area.
24:15It was a day or two prior to the murder.
24:17We basically put it on our system for any police agency, if they run it, that we get notified.
24:23And it was late on Sunday afternoon that I received a call from RCMP detachment in northern Saskatchewan that they had found the caliber.
24:33Three homicide detectives made the six hour drive to northern Saskatchewan.
24:40So what we learned is basically that everyone that was in that vehicle at the time earlier in the day was able to be alibied and being in Onion Lake at the time or in that area.
24:52So we now have five people that they couldn't have been in the category when the offense was committed.
24:59It was another dead end, except police now had the stolen Dodge caliber, which would be examined by forensic crime scenes investigators.
25:09So interestingly enough, the only two items of a full car that we found that were of interest to us ended up being a receipt from a restaurant in Edmonton.
25:19That was the day after the murder.
25:22We also found some cigarette butts that were in the vehicle that we sent those off to get examined to see if we can identify who was in a vehicle or at least get some confirmation.
25:31Results of DNA testing would take weeks.
25:36In the meantime, detectives followed other investigative avenues, including a stop at the fast food restaurant in Edmonton, where they pulled CCTV matching the timestamp on the receipt found in the car.
25:51At about 11 p.m. on March 14th, 2020, close to 17 hours after Christoph Herblin was killed, surveillance cameras captured the caliber at the drive through window.
26:05But it was still impossible to make out the identity of the driver.
26:10It would be six and a half weeks before police got another real break in the case.
26:17It was just a blur and we were just devastated.
26:31Christoph Herblin's death hit the culinary community in Calgary hard.
26:37Not only was he a masterful chef, he was also a well-respected mentor.
26:43I remember on that Saturday morning, I was with my kids and my family, grab my phone and I was like, oh, I just want to text Chef and see what he's up to.
26:56It was probably nine in the morning.
27:00Texted him like, hey, Chef, how are you doing?
27:04I haven't, you know, heard back from you.
27:07Like, are you free this weekend to go into the place or meet up?
27:12And nothing.
27:16He was always very responsive on text or phone calls.
27:19And 10 o'clock, 11 o'clock in the morning, noon, nothing.
27:23One, two, three, four, nothing.
27:26I was like, I was, I don't know, something just not, I wasn't adding up.
27:34Christoph Herblin was murdered just hours earlier.
27:39The homicide happened just as a global pandemic was declared.
27:44We couldn't have a funeral or anything.
27:47Quite a private person.
27:48And not being able to have a lot of people around was not a bad thing.
27:55So I could be, you know, in my grief without having to explain myself to anyone.
28:10Investigators worked tirelessly to bring his killers to justice.
28:16But weeks passed with no arrests.
28:20Then, nearly two months later, there were a series of key developments in the case.
28:26The first came from forensic testing of the cigarette butts found in the Dodge Caliber.
28:32So when the DNA hits came back to a female who we can't identify, but we called her AB.
28:41AB's identity is protected by a court-imposed publication ban.
28:46Then, on May 13, 2020, detectives got another break.
28:52So in the investigation, we were lucky.
28:54We received a Crime Stoppers tip from an anonymous person to the public that identified Anthony Ace as being responsible for the murder of Mr. Herblin.
29:02As we started digging into Anthony Ace, we learned that it's an alias for Anthony Dodson.
29:07And further, also learned that it's an alias he uses of Anthony Christian.
29:12Within just a few days, police received two tips about that person of interest.
29:19So we were lucky enough to get a second Crime Stoppers tip that identified Mr. Dodson as being involved in a break and enter to a cannabis shop.
29:26Seeing as Mr. Herblin's restaurant was right beside the cannabis shop that had been broken into previously in February,
29:34we started looking at that CCTV along with other CCTV for cannabis shops to see if we could determine,
29:40is it the same person that's breaking into these cannabis shops? Is it a different person?
29:45Is there something we can compare that we can move our file forward with?
29:49Surveillance video revealed a break-in at the cannabis dispensary adjacent to the victim's bistro on February 5, 2020,
29:58just over a month before the murder.
30:02Two days later, thieves returned.
30:05We were aware of previous break-in enters to the cannabis shop next door to Mr. Herblin's restaurant.
30:10So we did review the video that was captured at that time back in February.
30:14Unfortunately, because of the quality of the video, the movements that were being made,
30:19you couldn't get a very good image of the person that broke in.
30:24And comparing it to an unknown person, it makes it very difficult to identify who that person might be.
30:30Now, with a possible suspect in mind, investigators went through the video surveillance again, frame by frame.
30:39Thieves cut through the wall of the bistro for full access to the cannabis store's inventory.
30:45They dragged a 250-pound safe out of the business.
30:50In total, they got away with upwards of $20,000 in cash and marijuana.
30:56Once we learned of Mr. Dodson, we were able to start looking again at the previous video that we had
31:01and started seeing some very distinct similarities between the original CCTV video that we had in February
31:08and also the video we have now for the murder, including things like facial features, size, mannerisms,
31:14things like that that led us to believe that this potentially Mr. Dodson was a very good suspect for this.
31:21As investigators dug further into Anthony Dodson as a suspect, detectives decided to try to speak with AB,
31:30who was in custody in Saskatchewan.
31:33My understanding of who AB was is someone who has had some experience with the police in the past.
31:39I wanted to make sure they got on their phone with the lawyer because this wasn't going to be a witness interview.
31:43It was going to be an interview where they are going to be advised of their potential jeopardy in the homicide.
31:50So as I went to the back cell area, they were bringing this person out and introduced myself
31:57and explained what it was that I was there for and that I wanted to put them on the phone with the lawyer.
32:02They immediately burst into tears.
32:05AB admitted she was the driver of the Dodge Caliber, but told police she was not involved in the homicide.
32:15I found this person to be very forthcoming.
32:17They were unaware that the murder had taken place because they had left just before that murder took place.
32:23So they were unaware, or at least they claimed to be unaware of the murder and seemed to be quite impacted by the fact that that happened.
32:31AB confirmed Anthony Dodgson's involvement.
32:36She said after failing at 3am, they returned to make another attempt at breaking into the cannabis dispensary through the victim's restaurant.
32:46Mr. Dodgson was very determined to go into that weed dispensary, which was right next door to Mr. Herblin's restaurant that he was opening.
32:58AB told the detective she feared the two men might become violent and took off in the Dodge Caliber.
33:06Before they got out, they talked about a person being in the vehicle in the parking lot and what they might have to do if they were confronted by him.
33:16So with their interview, we were able to figure out from AB, basically the timeline of events.
33:38We were able to learn that after they did the initial break in and were spooked off, that they basically spent the next two hours just driving aimlessly before coming back to the restaurant.
33:54And for the first time, police got a lead on the unidentified second offender captured on CCTV.
34:01AB said she knew him by the nickname Twain.
34:06Welcome back.
34:19As detectives push for answers, they learn how a highly respected chef was lured to his death and the senseless motive behind it all.
34:29Here now is Nancy Hickst with the conclusion of Shattered Dreams.
34:39In the spring of 2020, police zeroed in on Anthony Dodgson as a possible suspect in the murder of Christophe Herblin.
34:48And we actually learned that he lives very close to the strip mall and also very close to where the Dodge Caliber was stolen.
34:58So we start putting everything together. We believe him to be a viable suspect.
35:04And based off everything we have, we approach the Crown and lay out what we believe has actually happened here.
35:10And we were able to receive charge approval from Mr. Dodgson.
35:14On June 3rd, 2020, Anthony Dodgson was arrested, taken to Calgary police headquarters and interviewed.
35:23Go on in, have a seat. If you need anything, we are monitoring, watch, but knock on the door, okay?
35:29Right.
35:30Okay, thanks. Somebody will be along shortly to talk to you.
35:35My name's Stu. I'm with our Calgary Homicide Unit.
35:38The interview started off slow.
35:41You are being charged with the murder of Christophe Herblin.
35:44This is all a joke. It's going to be thrown on.
35:47Okay.
35:48I wasn't in the city, so that's...
35:51Detective Cole began presenting the evidence against him.
35:55CCTV evidence shows a particular vehicle that was utilized.
35:58Okay.
35:59Okay, and this vehicle was stolen across the street from where you live.
36:03Oh, s**t.
36:04Okay?
36:05Okay.
36:06So that's part of it.
36:07Oh, s**t.
36:08All right.
36:09S**t.
36:10Have you ever been inside a black Dodge caliber?
36:15Probably.
36:16Yeah?
36:17I can't say.
36:18I haven't.
36:19I don't know.
36:20Okay.
36:21You are on CCTV in and around that spear thief.
36:24Okay.
36:25Candace getting in and out of that black Dodge caliber.
36:28S**t.
36:29Okay.
36:30The officer zeroed in on the moments leading up to Christophe Herblin's murder.
36:36And then what you have here is victim Christophe is coming out.
36:42And then what we got here is what I believe to be is you running this way.
36:48And then that's around the time that he's murdered.
37:02That's when Dodgson began to open up.
37:05So then that's you running around there and you get into it with Christophe.
37:14Allegedly.
37:15Allegedly.
37:16Yeah.
37:17Dodgson also identified the second suspect previously known as Twain.
37:24Hollyway.
37:25Okay.
37:26Hollywood.
37:27I said Holloway.
37:28Oh, Holloway.
37:29Okay.
37:30Mr. Holloway as much as we could tell wasn't wasn't on our radar as being a person involved
37:37in defense.
37:38So for us, it was a brand new name.
37:40The interview ended with Dodgson expressing regret.
37:44I wish this all never happened.
37:45I wish this all never happened.
37:47I'm truly sorry for anything.
37:54With the second suspect identified as Tommy Holloway, investigators went back to AB to see if she could pick him out of a photo lineup.
38:04Photograph number four.
38:05She was shown 10 photos and chose one positively identifying Holloway.
38:13Mr. Holloway did speak to us.
38:15He again, kind of downplayed the whole incident.
38:20He is adamant he did not do anything to Mr. Herblin himself.
38:25Based off the CCTV, we do believe that his role was to break the window in a way to lure Mr. Herblin out.
38:34The purpose of breaking the window was for the purpose of Mr. Dodgson stabbing Mr. Herblin to get the keys or whatever they wanted access to the building so they could break into the cannabis store leads to the murder charge on Mr. Holloway as well.
38:57Both Anthony Dodgson and Tommy Holloway were charged with second degree murder.
39:03So many chances during that night that the universe was telling them, no, this is not happening.
39:12Like so many opportunities to say, you know what, this isn't meant to be.
39:17Like, let's go home, you know, they lured him out.
39:28Yeah, I just, I'll never understand.
39:32I'll never understand it.
39:36In February of 2022, nearly two years after Chef Christoph Herblin was murdered,
39:43Dodgson and Holloway stood trial together in front of a jury.
39:47Jurors heard evidence that the pair had previously broken into the victim's restaurant to gain access to the neighboring cannabis store.
39:56And on the day they allegedly killed Christoph Herblin, they wanted to do the same thing again.
40:03But they didn't anticipate an alarm or that the wall between the stores had been reinforced.
40:10After a failed first attempt at 3am, they returned.
40:15Jurors watched a timeline of CCTV evidence.
40:21So the timeline that I did was before the actual homicide,
40:27which started around the time that the caliber was first seen in the back alley.
40:33And then capturing the break-in to the cafe.
40:38The police response to that.
40:42And then the people coming back after the police had left and all the victim was there,
40:51unfortunately alone waiting for somebody to come and secure his business.
40:58They also heard damning evidence from AB, along with admissions Dodgson made during his interview with Detective Stu Kuhl.
41:08After two days of deliberations, jurors decided that the two accused had different levels of culpability in the homicide.
41:17The jury ended up coming back with the decision of secondary murder for Mr. Dodgson and the decision of guilty of manslaughter for Mr. Holloway.
41:28Anthony Dodgson was sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole for 12 years.
41:35In sentencing, the justice noted that while Tommy Holloway did not perform the actual killing, his degree of moral culpability remains high.
41:46He was sentenced to seven years in prison, minus credit for time in custody pretrial and was left with about four and a half years left to serve.
41:56Christophe Herblin's wife and daughter left court feeling relieved it was over, but said there will never be justice.
42:08There never will be for me. Never. It was just so senseless. It wasn't like, I don't know. There will never be justice.
42:22I don't understand why they did it. I feel a lot of anger.
42:31The murder stole any sense of security they previously had living in a large city.
42:37I just didn't want to be there anymore.
42:43It makes me just feel sad and angry and scared.
42:50I just don't...
42:53Yeah, I don't know. I've just lost a lot of faith in people.
43:00They now find comfort in rural life,
43:03leaning on each other for support during so many significant life moments that Christophe has missed.
43:10I graduated university in the spring of 2023.
43:14So that would be a big one.
43:16You know, I went to California for three months last year with my horse.
43:22And I think he would have been really proud of me for doing that.
43:26And just, you know, like everyday things.
43:30Working and trying to cook, I think.
43:35It's not as much the big milestones now.
43:39It's just missing him.
43:43Every day, Christophe is remembered and loved.
43:47He was one of the best people I've ever met, really.
43:54Way better person than me.
43:58But totally didn't deserve it.
44:00He worked hard his entire life.
44:04Trying to make our lives better.
44:07I just loved being around him.
44:09And I just miss his presence.
44:12I miss, you know, my best friend.
44:17I miss the comfort and familiarity and his corny jokes.
44:27Yeah, he was just a good person.
44:37In August of 2024, Tommy Holloway was granted day parole.
44:42Anthony Dodgson remains in prison.
44:46He is eligible to apply for day parole in July of 2029.
44:50Christophe Herbland's wife and daughter hope to spread his ashes in France sometime in the next year.
45:01Thank you for joining us tonight on Crime Beat.
45:04I'm Anthony Robart.
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