Sooke RCMP say an autospy done yesterday has confirmed that a body found near Port Renfrew Sunday, is missing Sooke man, Michael Gregory Widner.
Widner was reported missing from Sooke last Thursday. It's believed the 39 year old arranged a meeting with someone at William Simmons Memorial Park, near Poirier Lake, on Otter Point Road, sometime after 8 pm on Wednesday last week. That's where his car was found abandoned.
A hiker found the body Sunday on the Pacific Marine route, near Port Renfrew.
Widner's death has been ruled a homicide, although the cause has not been released. RCMP say death is not considered a random act, and the public is not at risk.
Sooke RCMP S/Sgt Jeff McArthur says Widner was known to them well before the circumstances that led to his death. They were aware Widner was a prospect for the Nanaimo Hells Angels and had connections to organized crime.
Last night investigators returned to William Simmons Memorial Park to find people who use the park and the road, and learn if anyone saw anything that night. McCarthur says they were able to generate some new information which they are now looking into.
Vancouver Island Integrated Major Crime Unit (VIIMCU) is conducting the investigation. Sooke RCMP ask anyone with information to share it (250-642-5241), and you can do it anonymously as well by calling Crime Stoppers (1-800-222-8477 or 1-800-222-TIPS).