Man, 85, charged with first-degree murder after wife killed: Bridgewater police

A Bridgewater police vehicle is pictured outside a home on Haven Drive on March 3, 2025. (Callum Smith/CTV Atlantic)

An 85-year-old man has been charged with first-degree murder after he allegedly killed his 83-year-old wife in Bridgewater, N.S.

The Bridgewater Police Service responded to a 911 call about a woman in medical distress at a home on Haven Drive around 11:40 a.m. Sunday.

When officers arrived, they found an elderly woman who appeared to have been assaulted with a weapon. She was pronounced dead at the scene.

Police say they found an elderly man with “related injuries” inside another room in the home.

Investigators say the woman’s death has been ruled a homicide and they are treating it as a case of intimate partner violence.

The accused has been identified as 85-year-old Andrew Dawson Tanner. The victim has been identified as 83-year-old Patricia Annette Tanner.

“The injured parties had been in a long-term relationship,” said the Bridgewater Police Service in a statement. “There have not been any prior documented incidents of intimate partner violence connected to these individuals.”

The man was taken to the South Shore Regional Hospital – while in police custody – where he was treated for his injuries.

Police later executed a search warrant at the home. Forensics officers from the Truro Police Service assisted in processing the scene.

“The Nova Scotia Medical Examiner Service has been engaged in this ongoing investigation,” said the Bridgewater police. “Police cannot speculate on the cause of death until an autopsy is completed by this service.”

Andrew Tanner appeared before the Bridgewater provincial court from the hospital Monday morning.

He remains in custody and is due back in court at a later date.

The Bridgewater Police Service is asking anyone with information about the case to contact them at 902-543-2464.

‘We need answers’

This is the seventh homicide allegedly linked to intimate partner violence in Nova Scotia since October.

“It’s heartbreaking because we can just look at the trend line of where this is going and it should be concerning to every Nova Scotian, every Canadian,” said Bridgewater Mayor David Mitchell. “Our province isn’t immune to this, but that trend line is concerning.”

Mitchell said there are supports available in Bridgewater for people who want to leave an abusive relationship, but noted many communities don’t have adequate supports.

“But I also don’t know what supports are needed,” he said. “I think this is a very complex issue. I don’t know, if we drill down into what the root cause of this is, why is this trend going in this direction? I don’t want to speculate, but we need answers.”

More to come…

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