Police renew plea for tips in fatal 2021 stabbing of Joshua Bennett

Felisha Bennett holds up a poster seeking tips in the death of her 18-year-old son, Joshua Bennett, in September 2024. (CTV News)

Waterloo Regional Police are asking for the public’s help to close an unsolved murder case.

Joshua Bennett, 18, was found dead along a Kitchener trail at 4:30 a.m. on Sept. 24, 2021. An autopsy determined he had been stabbed multiple times.

Bennett was from Etobicoke but, at the time of his death, was living in Waterloo while he attended Conestoga College.

Investigators said Bennett arrived on Paulander Drive around 6:30 p.m. the night before his body was discovered. Over the next hour, he was seen interacting with several people near 60 and 40 Paulander Drive. Then, around 7:25 p.m., Bennett and two other males were captured on security video following an unidentified man wearing in a long dark coat as they walked away from the housing complex.

That was the last sighting of the 18-year-old.

Police said it was unclear if he was stabbed on the night of Sept. 23 or in the early morning of Sept. 24.

No one has been arrested for the homicide.

To mark the four-year anniversary of Bennett’s death, police renewed their plea for tips in the case on Wednesday.

“He had his whole life ahead of him,” police said in a social media video. “Instead, his life was taken too soon.”

A reward of up to $50,000 is being offered for credible information that leads to an arrest, and successful prosecution, of those responsible for the stabbing.

“We believe there are people who know exactly what happened to Joshua, and we are appealing for them to come forward,” police said. “No matter how insignificant you may feel this information is, we implore you to come forward. It could be the missing piece to solving this homicide.”

Tips can be made to Waterloo Regional Police’s Major Crime Unit at 519-570-9777, ext. 8191, or anonymously to Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 or www.waterloocrimestoppers.com.