NYE murders in North End deemed to stem from intimate partner violence

CITYnews halifax / By Dan Ahlstrand

In an update to their investigation into a violent incident on Gottingen Street in Halifax on New Year’s Eve, police say three people died that night as a result of gunshot wounds.

Officers were called to the 2400 block of Gottingen Street at 10:35 p.m. on Tuesday and found a deceased woman inside a vehicle along with an unresponsive man. The man was rushed to hospital, where he later died, a press release states.

The woman has been identified as Cora-Lee Smith, 40, and the man as her father, Bradford Downey, 73.

Related:

• Nova Scotia RCMP investigating another fatal case of intimate partner violence
• An average of 140 women and girls were killed by a partner or relative per day in 2023, the UN says
• String of three murders in Nova Scotia raises alarm about intimate partner violence

A few hours later, at approximately 1:30 a.m. on Jan. 1, investigators learned that a man who was known to the victims was believed to be in the area of the Halifax Commons. Officers found him dead of a gunshot wound. Police recovered a firearm at the scene.

The medical examiner’s office confirmed to The Canadian Press the victims’ deaths are homicides and are investigating the shooter’s death as a potential suicide.

That man has been identified as 39-year-old Matthew Costain.

Investigators say that Costain was known to be in a relationship with Cora-Lee Smith and that the homicides are believed to be incidents of intimate partner violence. At this time, police are not looking for any other suspects.

The investigation remains ongoing, and anyone with additional information is asked to call police at 902-490-502. Anonymous tips can also be sent to Crime Stoppers by calling toll-free 1-800-222-TIPS (8477), submitting a secure web tip at www.crimestoppers.ns.c, or using the P3 Tips app.

A string of intimate partner violence incidents

Since Oct. 18, three murder-suicides involving couples have been reported by police in Nova Scotia, and in each case a man killed his female partner before taking his own life. One was in Yarmouth, N.S., and the other two occurred in suburban Halifax.

A news release from Nova Scotia RCMP confirmed that the death last month of a 59-year-old woman in Enfield, N.S., at the hands of her 61-year-old partner was a result of intimate partner violence. The release also confirmed the woman’s partner, who killed himself, was a retired RCMP member. That information was released after the woman’s daughter, Tara Graham, told news outlets that her mother was killed by her ex-Mountie spouse.

In September, the Nova Scotia legislature adopted a bill declaring domestic violence an epidemic in the province in response to a recommendation from the commission of inquiry that investigated the 2020 mass shooting in Nova Scotia that claimed 22 lives. The murderous rampage began after the killer brutally assaulted his spouse.

When the bill passed, the New Democrats noted that Nova Scotia had the highest rate of intimate partner violence of any province in Canada, with over 30 per cent of women and 22.5 per cent of men who have been in a relationship reporting being physically or sexually assaulted by their partner.

With files from Cassidy McMackon, The Canadian Press.