A 23-year-old independent professional wrestler has been arrested by the Sûreté du Québec in connection to the disappearance of a 16-year-old female from Hemmingford, Québec.
Kurt Lauder, who goes by the ring name Kurt “The Career Killer” Lauderdale, was charged today with first degree murder. The parents of Lauder, Suzanne Lauder-Grosser, 52 and Ian Grosser, 61 have also been charged with conspiracy after the fact.
A body of a 16-year-old girl was discovered today. Police have yet to confirm if the body is that of Shanna Poissant who disappeared on July 11. The search for the missing girl was initially called off on Monday, but resumed today after the arrest of the three suspects. Hemminford is located 50 kilometres south of Montreal near the Canada-U.S. border.
Police had interviewed Lauder previously and searched his home and vehicle.
An autopsy will be performed on the body.
Lauder was a listed member of International Syndicate Wrestling (IWS) and Montreal Wrestling Federation (MWF) rosters. The IWS made the following statement on its website
“By now it is public knowledge that Kurt Lauder, who wrestles for the IWS as Kurt Lauderdale, has been arrested in connection with the disappearance of Shanna Poissant in Hemmingford. Nobody truly knows what has happened thus far and the IWS unconditionally stands by Kurt during this ordeal. We urge everyone to remember that in Canada, a man is innocent until proven guilty, and Kurt Lauder has not been convicted of any crime. For anyone who knows Kurt, it is inconceivable that he is capable of such actions. We hope that this situation is resolved quickly so that Kurt and his family can be exonerated. The IWS supports our friend Kurt and our thoughts go out to the Poissant family who have suffered a tremendous loss.”
— With files from cbc.ca and CTV news Montreal.