PICTURED: US chocolatier Jonathan Lehrer and ‘hitman’ are hauled off to jail in cuffs after being charged with the murder of Canadian software developer Daniel Langlois and his girlfriend in Dominica
An American chocolatier accused of killing Canadian animation innovator Daniel Langlois and his partner has been photographed in handcuffs after being charged with murder in the Caribbean.
Jonathan Lehrer, 57, and alleged hitman Robert Snider appeared in the Roseau Magistrate Court in Dominica on Wednesday to be charged in the murders of Langlois, 66, and Dominique Marchand, both from Quebec.
The two suspects were not required to enter pleas during their first court appearance and a judge ordered them to remain in custody until their next hearing. Snyder appeared to have severe burns on his arm and leg, the CBC reported.
Langlois and Marchand were “ambushed” by a hitman who killed them and then set their car on fire, according to police, who believe the entrepreneur was killed over a traffic dispute with Lehrer.
The French-Canadian is known as the founder of Softimage, which created 3D animation software for films such as Jurassic Park, Men in Black and Star Wars.
He and Lehrer were involved in a dispute over the use of the Morne Rouge public road, which runs through the chocolatier's estate.
Jonathan Lehrer, 57 (right) and alleged hit man Robert Snider (left) appeared in the Roseau Magistrate Court in Dominica on Wednesday
The American businessman is accused of the murders of his neighbor, Canadian animation innovator Daniel Langlois and his partner Dominique Marchand
Daniel Langlois, left, and Dominique Marchand, right, from Quebec, were found dead in a charred vehicle near the eco-resort they owned in Dominica
The battle reached the island's highest court, which ruled in 2019 that the road was public and could be used freely by Langlois' guests.
In 2019 court documents seen by DailyMail.com, Langlois accused Lehrer of interfering with the unfettered and free use of public roads for at least four years.
On one occasion, Lehrer allegedly “blocked the road by placing boulders across the road, digging a ditch across the road, erecting metal pipes, and placing equipment and supplies on the road, thereby the claimants and their employees were denied access to their property'.
According to a 2018 local report, a protest took place on the road after “a landowner from Bois Cutlette” blocked it.
Dominica News Online said: “The residents, most of whom are employees at Petite Coulibri, could not safely go to work and decided to protest against the landowner's action.”
Speaking to the Journal de Montreal (JDM) earlier this week, Lehrer's father Robert rejected the idea that his son could be responsible for the gruesome murders.
'Jonathan is a successful businessman, not a murderer. We are very close, and he is not a violent man at all. I find it hard to believe,” he said.
Dominica News Online previously reported that police had taken a total of four people for questioning: Lehrer, his wife, Snider and a Dominican man.
Dominica police said the intense fire in the car made identifying the bodies impossible, and they are relying on “circumstantial evidence to link them to the missing couple.”
The Canadian couple opened their eco-resort last year. They had been working on it for twenty years
Jacqueline Dupigny, a local resident of Dominica, told DailyMail.com that the Canadian couple were loved on the island and would be greatly missed.
She said, “The sweetest foreigners who set foot on this island. They were exemplary stewards of the land around them and they treated them with such respect to their staff.”
The entrepreneur sold his software company to Microsoft for $200 million in 1994 and subsequently founded the Daniel Langlois Foundation for the Art, Sciences and Technology.
In 1997, he received a Scientific and Technical Oscar from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
The Daniel Langlois Foundation said Mr. Langlois' “stellar career has had a profound influence on contemporary cinema.”
Langlois and Marchand played important roles in the community, according to Soufriere village politician Denise Charles-Pemberton, who told a state radio station: “The last few days have been incredibly difficult for our constituency.
'The loss of two members of our community, who have been central to the development and sense of spirit and belonging, is something we have found difficult to put into words.
“Daniel and Dominique may be known for their world-famous eco-resort in the village, but to the people of the Soufriere constituency and to me, they were kind, loving and truly community-minded.”