Unsolved Cases in town/city of Windsor

Severely beaten body found in the basement

File Number: 104200234

Windsor, Ontario - The Windsor Police Service and Windsor Police Services Board have doubled the reward to $40,000 for information leading to an arrest in the murders of Debilleanne (Dee Dee) Williamson and her son Brandon.

The bodies of Dee Dee Williamson and her son, Xavier Rucker, were found on February 27, 2003. Twenty years later, the investigation continues.

Williamson's sister was the first to come upon the gruesome scene, locating Williamson’s severely beaten body in the basement of the residence.

Xavier's body was in the bathroom on the main floor. For investigation reasons, police have never disclosed the child’s cause of death.

"There are people out there who know who is responsible for this double murder or who have information that can help us solve this crime," said Daniel Potvin, Superintendent in charge of investigations.

"We hope the additional reward money will provide the incentive these people need to come forward and tell what they know. Even a small piece of information that someone thinks is trivial be the missing evidence that allows our investigations to connect the dots and finally solve this mystery."

On the 20th anniversary of these horrific homicides, members of the Williamson family joined investigators to announce that a $40,000 reward is now being offered for information that leads to an arrest in the case — twice the amount that was previously announced, and the highest amount for any current Windsor police investigation.

"Twenty years is a very long time of not knowing and unanswered questions," said Dee Dee's niece Nike Williamson.

She said while she was very young when the crime happened, it is something that is on her mind daily.

Const. Steve Owen, lead investigator on the case said there have been numerous persons of interested who have been ruled out through DNA evidence.

"Through the years like I said, there's been numerous persons of interest some were easily rolled out. Some have not been some are still persons of interest and some are strong persons of interest where there may be more than one thing that points to that person," he said. "But at this point, we're not prepared to say it's this one individual."

Const. Owen said Dee Dee had friends on both sides of the border, so there are persons of interest in both Detroit and Windsor. He said the focus is evenly split between the two cities with Detroit police cooperating.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Major Crimes Unit at 519-255-6700, ext. 4830. They can also contact Crime Stoppers anonymously at 519-258-8477 (TIPS).

Any update on this case, please contact us at fileupdate@ucfiles.com

Kirk Knight, Marlene Sweet, Jason, Debilleanne Williamson, Xavier Brandon Rucker, Gerardine Butterfi

File Number: 104200237

Windsor, Ontario - Windsor police have increased and extended rewards in the unsolved murders of seven people over several decades, in the hopes of finally offering some justice to the victims' families.

The rewards in each case are available until December 31, 2023.

"We want to not only solve the homicides and bring people who are responsible through the court system, but it so important for the families to get that closure," said Acting Deputy Chief Jason Crowley. "That's the importance of finding who is responsible for these crimes and bringing them to justice."

Kirk Knight

The oldest case on the list is the May 1980 murder of Kirk Knight. Someone kidnapped him, tied him to a cement block and dumped him into the Detroit River, likely while he was still breathing.

Police have said in the past they believe members of the Lobos biker gang, which patched over to the Hells Angels in 2001, were behind the brutal slaying.

Knight's murder likely stemmed from the May 16, 1980, shooting of Lobos gang member John Muzzatti outside the Seminole Tavern, now known as Silvers. Knight's brother was a suspect in the shooting. Muzzatti survived, but the gang wanted payback.

Knight, who had nothing to do with the gunplay, was last seen May 19, 1980, being forced into a green 1972 Chevy Nova by three men. A boater found his body on May 25, 1980, still tied to the cement block, bobbing against some abandoned docks.

Marlene Sweet and Jason

The next oldest case is the double murder of Marlene Sweet, 31, and her seven-year-old son, Jason. Their badly decomposed bodies were found in their home, apartment 15 at 8671 Wyandotte St. E., on Sept. 13, 1982. Their deaths were violent. Police have said Sweet was beaten to death and her son appeared to have been smothered.

Debilleanne "Dee Dee" Williamson and Xavier Brandon Rucker

On Feb. 27, 2003, the bodies of Debilleanne "Dee Dee" Williamson and her four-year-old son, Xavier Brandon Rucker, were discovered in their home at 1323 Tilston Dr. Police never established a motive or a firm suspect, but several persons of interest remain under investigation.

Gerardine Butterfield

Gerardine Butterfield, 63, was discovered dead in her apartment at 591 Wellington Ave. on May 25, 2019. But police believe she was killed several days before that. Butterfield lived alone in apartment 101 and allowed only immediate family members to visit her. It was known that she would only leave her apartment with those select family members.

Anyone seen with her, trying to contact her or leaving her apartment in May 2019 would be considered suspicious. It was revealed in 2020 that a person of interest had been identified, but police were still looking for more witnesses and additional information.

Jerome Allen

Jerome Allen, 29, was last seen early in the morning on Octobaer 28, 2018, at Leopard's Lounge and Broil. He was reported missing seven days later. Allen's body was never found. Despite not having a body, a crime scene or a murder weapon, police believe he was murdered.

Allen was living in the Windsor area when he disappeared but he had ties to the Greater Toronto Area. Police have said they believe there are people in Windsor, the GTA and elsewhere who know what happened, who is responsible, and where Allen's body was hidden.

Anyone with details about these unsolved cases can call Windsor police at 519-255-6700 ext. 4830, or provide anonymous tips to Crime Stoppers at 519-258-8477 (TIPS)

Any update on these cases, please contact us at fileupdate@ucfiles.com