After the family of Donnie Robichaud celebrated his life during a visitation yesterday, his widow spoke fondly of him and their two children.
Melissa Robichaud says Donnie loved two things: his boys, and his bike.
So, on Monday night, Donnie Robichaud's best friends went to get his prized possession so it could be stored in a safe place until Donnie’s oldest son gets his motorcycle licence.
“They are literally twins of their father, they are identical,” said Melissa Robichaud.“Every time I look at them, I see him. It's comforting, it’s painful, but it’s comforting.”
She wears Robichaud's necklace -- the one he was wearing when he was shot and killed Friday morning.
“My oldest, the whole death didn't really hit him until he walked in and saw his dad in the coffin, and he fell to his knees,” she said.
The couple separated after 16 years of marriage, but remained close.
She was supposed to pick up their two boys from Robichaud’s apartment Friday morning.
In a twist of fate, she picked them up the evening before.
“My kids could have been walking to the car and got shot, that's all that's been running through my head,” she said.
The long gun allegedly used by Matthew Vincent Raymond was purchased legally and he had a licence for it.
Fredericton police have also confirmed that some of what happened was captured on a body camera worn by an officer that day.
Which officer, we don't know. The footage has been downloaded and is considered evidence.
“We are still examining all investigative avenues,” said Fredericton Police Chief Leanne Fitch.
Police haven't given a definitive answer to whether there's a connection between the shooter and the two civilians. Bobbie Lee Wright, who had recently announced on Facebook that she was in a relationship with Robichaud, was also killed on Friday morning.
There was no investigation update on Tuesday.
All the uncertainty has left Donnie Robichaud’s loved ones truly at a loss.
“Donnie was a part of our life for 20-some years and we're going to miss him,” said Bonnie Crossman.“We loved him.”
Melissa says he was a Bacchus Motorcycle Club member and that club members and the entire community have been nothing but supportive to her and her boys.
But when Robichaud's sons found out Justin Trudeau had come to pay tribute to the fallen officers, they asked, why not their father too?
“My son looked at me and cried, he said mom, he didn't contact us, he didn't reach out to us, he didn't come and say ‘I'm sorry for your loss,’” she said.
That loss was felt in and out of uniform.
The regimental funeral for the two police officers killed last Friday will be held on Saturday. Const. Sara Burns and Const. Robb Costello were killed when they responded to the scene on Brookside Drive.
There will be a parade before the funeral of the two Fredericton Police Force members, joined by other agencies, the RCMP, and first responders.
The public is invited to come out and watch the parade. It will start at noon.
Visitation for the officers will be held Thursday afternoon and evening at the Fredericton Convention Centre.
With files from CTV Atlantic’s Laura Brown.
