Convicted murderer’s arrest in Kirwan case shocks town residents

New Glasgow residents were shocked and saddened to hear a convicted killer has been accused of killing again while out on parole.

Christopher Alexander Falconer of Heathbell has been charged with kidnapping and first-degree murder in the death of Amber Kirwan.

Falconer, 29, was arrested at the Dorchester Institution in New Brunswick Wednesday morning where he is currently serving a life sentence for the 1998 murder of a taxi driver.

He was on parole when Kirwan, 19, disappeared after a night out with friends. Her body was found in a wooded area in Heathbell about a month later.

Falconer was arrested early in the investigation and had his parole revoked.

New Glasgow residents responded to news of the charges on Thursday with outrage.

“It doesn’t say much for the parole system,” said one woman, who didn’t want to give her name but said she knows the Falconer family. “This person was just a bad apple.”

“Our laws and our penal system is way too lenient,” said Robert. “I think if a person is in jail for killing someone, that’s where they should stay.”

“It’s sad that he was out in the public and able to do it over again,” said another woman. “Someone has definitely failed him along the way because he definitely needed help.”

Police wouldn’t say what led them to arrest Falconer, who was convicted of second-degree murder in the 1998 death of a taxi driver in the Heathbell area.

Supt. Darrell Beaton of Northeast Nova RCMP said there was no existing relationship between the victim, her friends or family and the accused.

“The investigation has revealed that to the best of our knowledge there was no relationship between Christopher Falconer and Amber Kirwan,” said Beaton during a news conference Thursday.

New Glasgow police chief Delaney Chisholm would not say that this was a random act.

“We really can’t get into specifics,” said Chisholm. “We really can’t go into whether it was a random act or not as if forms part of the evidentiary process.

A woman was also arrested on Wednesday but was released without charges.

Kirwan was last seen on surveillance video leaving the local Dooly’s pool hall and was believed to be walking to a convenience store to meet her boyfriend early in the morning of Oct. 9, 2011.

Her boyfriend said she never showed up at the store.

Her body was found in a wooded lot near Heathbell and Hardwood Hill roads in Heathbell, Nova Scotia, last November.

Falconer’s parole was revoked when police found weapons and drugs in his possession and he is currently continuing to serve a life sentence.

A car was seized and searched in the Heathbell Road area, and sources say it belonged to Falconer’s sister.

Police have not confirmed any details about the vehicle.