Saskatchewan RCMP say kidnapping and first degree murder charges have been laid in connection to a 2011 missing person investigation. Search warrants were executed Tuesday at a rural property outside the community of Baldwinton and area residents can expect an increased police presence in this area for the next day.

Baldwinton is approximately 72 kilometres west of North Battleford.

Nearly eleven years after Edward Keith Geddes, who was known as Ted, was last seen, two men who were known to him have been charged.

A missing persons investigation got underway after Ted Geddes, who was 64-years-old at the time, couldn’t be located. He was last seen in April, 2011, in the Baldwinton area. When RCMP officers went to his home as part of an unrelated incident that same month, they found his dog, dead, in the entranceway and police say it wasn’t from natural causes. Shortly after, his disappearance was determined to be suspicious.

The investigation into the disappearance of Ted Geddes was renewed in 2021 with the Saskatchewan RCMP Historical Case Unit. After a nearly year long investigation, two men were arrested and charged this past Sunday (Feb 6).

Insp. Josh Graham, acting Officer in Charge of Saskatchewan RCMP Major Crimes says the investigation is ongoing because Ted Geddes has not been located and their investigators will work to bring that closure to his family.

Inspector Graham says, “As time passes, people responsible for these types of crimes might assume the police aren’t investigating them – this is simply not the case. This is just one example that demonstrates the continued perseverance and commitment of our homicide investigators in helping bring a sense of closure for the family and friends of victims of homicide in Saskatchewan. Even if that takes nearly 10 years, as with this case.”

Robert (Bob) Welsey Pich, age 58 years, and 70-year-old John Robert Gregoire both from the Baldwinton area are facing charges of first degree murder and kidnapping with a firearm. Gregoire is also charged with indecently interfering with human remains.

Their next court appearance in North Battleford is March 8th.

This investigation was conducted with the assistance of multiple RCMP units including Cut Knife RCMP Detachment, Saskatchewan RCMP Historical Case Unit with the assistance of the Saskatchewan RCMP Major Crime Unit, RCMP Forensic Identification Section, among others.