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The trajectory is fairly typical and anyone remotely curious can follow the path.

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The kick-off might be drugs, drunk in public, or a stolen car. The next stage will be assault or armed robbery. You can typically find these bon mots on Google in the police blotter.

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And then, the big enchilada: Murder.

Woman’s body found in trash bin

This appears to be Devlin O’Blenis’s chosen life path.

O’Blenis, 35, has now allegedly drank from the criminal milieu’s golden chalice. The Moncton man is charged with first-degree murder in the grisly slaying of Melissa Price, 39, whose body was discovered in a garbage bin on Feb. 15. The charge has not yet been tested in court.

Cops in Canada keep it buttoned (anyone in media who has worked in the U.S. will tell you it’s like night and day) and sometimes for good reasons. Other times, the rationale is simply ridiculous.

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In Moncton, the RCMP are saying little about tragic Melissa Price and the allegedly hyper-violent Mr. O’Blenis. This leads to widespread speculation and rumours made out of whole cloth.

Was it drugs? Jealousy? Paranoia? Sex? Cops aren’t saying much about the slaying of the stunning, blond mother of three.

Victim was ‘pure fire and passion’

“Melissa was no angel. She was pure fire and passion. She followed her beliefs with pure conviction,” her sister Sarah wrote on Facebook. “She was strong-willed, stubborn, and highly expressive. She never wavered her personality to suit anyone else, and we loved her for it. Her strength and endurance were admirable.”

She then slammed her sister’s accused killer as “evil.”

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“Melissa my beautiful sister, your demons are behind you. You are among many loved ones, free of pain and sadness,” Sarah added. “Your children will be well cared for and watched over.”

It’s been suggested that the accused and victim once dated, but like much else, it’s murky. Cops would not say one way or the other if the pair even knew each other. It’s believed Price was murdered in her apartment unit, about a kilometre away from where her body was found.

As for O’Blenis, he is no stranger to law enforcement.

Attempted murder charge

In 2020, O’Blenis was arrested and charged with attempted murder in a 2019 shooting in Moncton. A 28-year-old victim was shot in the incident and taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. At the time, O’Blenis was also charged with breaching parole.

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Our protagonist got it down to aggravated assault and buddy was serving a four-year, six-month and 19-day sentence for discharge restricted/prohibited firearm with intent and possess weapon contrary to prohibition order.

Then, he got back on the radar on March 7, 2024, when a warrant was issued for breaching the conditions of statutory release. O’Blenis had been sprung from a Quebec prison but, oh dear, he failed to report to a community correctional centre in Saint John.

The breaching probation chapter is requisite.

Of course, local wags in Moncton are wondering: Why wasn’t buddy still in the slammer? Well, kids, this is Canada and punishment is reserved for the virtuous.

It was no secret that O’Blenis had an explosive temper. Was he being monitored?

The only thing I can conclude is that someone on the parole board gushed, “Ohhh … if only I could change him.”

And somewhere else in Canada today, a similar narrative and trajectory is being followed

bhunter@postmedia.com

@HunterTOSun

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