Lindsay Buziak: Canadian Real Estate Agent's Murder Still Unsolved
Her killers met her for a home showing and then murdered her
Real Estate Agent Brutally Murdered
24-year-old Lindsay Buziak was just starting her career as a real estate agent and had a promising future ahead of her, when she was suddenly contacted by new clients. The couple, ostensibly millionaire prospective home buyers, told Lindsay that they needed to find a new residence soon.
She found a property that was suitable for them and made arrangements to meet them there on February 2nd, 2008. However, she had reservations about this showing, intuiting that something wasn’t quite right. Lindsay was confused as to how they’d obtained her personal cell phone number and also wondered about the caller’s unusual accent—one that almost sounded fake.
Still, the professional and hardworking Lindsay showed up for the appointment in Saanich, greeted the couple and led them inside. Unbeknownst to her, she would not emerge from that house alive.
A short time later, she was discovered dead in the master bedroom, the victim of dozens of stab wounds. While some details about how this crime was orchestrated and carried out appeared to be indicative of a professional hit, others—such as the brutal manner in which she was killed—seemed to suggest that the killers were a bit closer to home.
Who murdered Lindsay Buziak?
Lindsay Elizabeth Buziak
One of two daughters, Lindsay Elizabeth Buziak was born on November 2nd, 1983, in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, to parents Jeff and Evelyn. Kind, well-liked, and driven, Lindsay was close to her family and had many friends.
“She was a spectacular young woman,” remembered her father Jeff.
Lindsay followed in her father’s footsteps and became a real estate agent, working for Shirley Zailo at RE/MAX in Victoria. She was also in a relationship with Shirley’s son, Jason, a fellow realtor. The couple had been together for approximately a year when she was murdered.
New Clients Make Lindsay Uneasy
In late January 2008, Lindsay was contacted by a woman who said that she and her husband needed to find a house as soon as possible and had a budget of one million dollars.
“The woman asked to see properties in the $1-million price range in quiet neighborhoods and had to buy in a day,” noted one of Lindsay’s colleagues.
Though a deal like this would have earned her a high commission, Lindsay felt uneasy about the prospective clients. The woman had an accent she couldn’t place and it sounded as though she might be faking it. But why?
Additionally, Lindsay questioned how this person had gotten her personal cell phone number. The woman explained that she’d obtained it from another client of Lindsay’s, who had recommended her. However, the previous client in question happened to be on vacation at the time and Lindsay was unable to verify this information.
She expressed concerns to both Jeff and Jason, unsure of how to proceed. Jeff respected his daughter’s instincts and felt uncomfortable with the situation as well. Jason, on the other hand, encouraged Lindsay to work with them because this would be an important deal for her and would earn her a lot of money.
To allay her fears, Jason assured her that he’d wait outside of the residence in his car while she was showing them the home, so that he’d be close if she needed him. Some sources also claim that he had offered to take over the showing for her, but she refused.
She decided to go ahead with the showing. She found a property that met their requirements—a beautiful home on De Sousa Place in Saanich, a suburb of Victoria—and set up an appointment to show them the residence on February 2nd, 2008 at 5:30 p.m.
The Fateful Day
Jeff Buziak maintains a website that details the timeline of events on the day that his daughter was murdered.
On February 2nd, Jason and Lindsay went to a restaurant called Sauce and had a late lunch, paying the bill at 4:24 p.m. The two parted ways and it is believed that she quickly went home to change her clothes before heading to Saanich.
Before Lindsay arrived, eyewitnesses spotted a tall, dark-haired man and a blonde woman (35-45 years of age) wearing a bright, patterned dress walking up to the home. It appears that they must have parked on another street, as no one saw them get out of a vehicle.
The caller had originally told Lindsay that she planned to show up alone that day, but evidently she brought her “husband” with her.
Lindsay arrived soon thereafter and was seen shaking hands with the couple. There was no indication that she knew them personally, according to eyewitness reports. Then she led them inside the house.
Meanwhile, Jason went to an auto repair shop, SHC, to pick up one of his colleagues. They were seen on CCTV footage leaving SHC at 5:30 p.m. Together, the two drove to Saanich. Jason texted Lindsay to let her know that he was running late.
“Just a couple of minutes away,” he texted her at 5:38 p.m. She never opened this text.
According to law enforcement and an episode of Dateline dedicated to Lindsay’s case, this was the final text that Jason sent her.
However, he has stated that he actually texted “are you okay?” later and that it was the lack of a response to his question that made him concerned for his girlfriend.
Once there, he and his coworker sat outside for ten minutes.
Then Jason, not wanting to be a “nosy, interfering boyfriend,” decided to drive away and park on a nearby street instead.
After another ten minutes with no word from Lindsay, this is when Jason says that he texted “are you okay?,” to which he received no response. He started to sense that something was wrong.
He drove back to the house, got out of the car and walked up to the door. As he approached, he saw a figure through the glass of the front door. It appeared as if they’d initially intended to leave through the front door, then thought better of it once they saw Jason, and turned around.
Once at the door, Jason noticed Lindsay’s shoes sitting on the floor inside the house and found this concerning. He knocked repeatedly, but no one answered and the door was locked. He called 911 at 6:05 p.m.
His coworker went around back and found a hole in the fence, which allowed him to gain access to the backyard. The patio door, through which Lindsay’s assailants had likely exited, was unlocked.
Jason’s colleague entered the home through the patio door, then went to the front door and unlocked it for Jason. Jason ended the 911 call and went inside to look for Lindsay. According to him, he immediately ran upstairs and into the master bedroom, where he made a shocking discovery—the bloody, lifeless body of Lindsay on the floor.
He attempted CPR on Lindsay, but she was already gone. Some have questioned how Jason found her so quickly, as the house was large and she could, in theory, have been anywhere inside. This has never been fully explained. In this video, he reenacts entering the house and running upstairs for law enforcement.
Jason called 911 once more at 6:11 p.m. and told them about his disturbing discovery. Police officers and paramedics were quickly dispatched to the residence. After their arrival, Lindsay was officially pronounced dead.
Autopsy Findings & Lack of Physical Evidence From Assailants
No one seems to have witnessed the couple leaving the property or saw what kind of vehicle they were driving.
Lindsay’s autopsy results revealed that she had been stabbed more than 40 times, in her chest, head and neck. She hadn’t been robbed or sexually assaulted, and nothing appeared to be missing from the home. Her cell phone was still in her pocket and it was discovered that she’d made a call at 5:41 p.m.
However, investigators believed that this was an accidental pocket dial and that the attack was likely already in progress at this point. Lindsay had no defensive wounds and it looked as if the attack had likely started from behind. Since she probably hadn’t seen it coming, she had no opportunity to defend herself.
The perpetrators hadn’t left behind any fingerprints or DNA, and it appeared from the pattern of wounds that only one of them had been responsible for the stabbing.
The cell phone used by the caller had been purchased in Vancouver months earlier and hadn’t been used at all until she made the first call to Lindsay. The phone belonged to a “Paulo Rodriguez,” which was determined to be a fake name. It was deactivated after Lindsay’s murder and has never been used again.
Jason and his colleague were questioned. Jason’s timeline of events was confirmed with the CCTV footage. He also took a polygraph test and passed it. The authorities have said that he has always been cooperative with their investigation.
But who would have wanted to kill Lindsay, a well-liked woman with no known enemies? That question proved difficult to answer.
A Possible Drug Connection?
The previous December Lindsay had visited a friend in Calgary. This person apparently had some connection to a drug operation, although Lindsay herself is not known to have ever had any involvement in those kinds of activities.
Detective Sergeant Horsley:
“There is nothing in her life—and we’ve conducted an extensive background (check)—that would indicate that she was involved in anything criminal, in anything of a domestic violence relationship, and that is the most perplexing thing.”
On January 22nd, 2008, her friend, along with others, were arrested in the largest drug bust in Alberta’s history.
Because of the timing of this event in relation to Lindsay’s murder, some have theorized that her killing was set up by a drug cartel, in the belief that she was the informant behind the drug bust.
The police ultimately dismissed this theory, due to both a lack of solid evidence, as well as the fact that Lindsay was not—and never had been—an informant. Still, this doesn’t necessarily preclude the possibility that she was mistaken for one.
Any evidence to support this idea has yet to be found, though.
Or a More Personal Motive?
The police felt this was a crime with a personal motive. From the brutal method of the killing to the fact that they’d had Lindsay’s personal number, it seemed clear to investigators that she was specifically targeted and that this wasn’t random. They also said that it seemed too “amateurish” to be a professional hit.
Although, it’s worth noting that the crime was fairly smoothly orchestrated and the assailants left behind no forensic evidence tying themselves to it, so not an entirely amateur effort.
In a two-part interview with John Lordan, of the YouTube channel LordanArts, Jeff Buziak stated that Lindsay was unhappy in her relationship with Jason and wanted to leave him. Allegedly, Jason was jealous and possessive, and she’d also learned that he was selling steroids on the side.
Shortly before her death, she confided in her father that she’d witnessed something she “shouldn’t have.” Lindsay was obviously very shaken by this, Jeff said, but refused to elaborate on what she’d seen or who was involved.
He also spoke of Shirley Zailo, Lindsay’s boss and Jason’s mother, and about how Lindsay had had some issues with her as well. Shirley allegedly had a reputation for trying to control things when she was over at their house (a million-dollar home that she’d purchased for the couple) and driving guests away with her intimidating attitude.
Interestingly, a close friend of Lindsay’s, Nikki, received an odd phone call later in 2008. While she couldn’t remember much of what the caller said, she did remember that the woman had a strange accent that she couldn’t place.
Remembering the calls that Lindsay had gotten before her murder, this unsettled Nikki. She attempted to call them back “20 or 30 times” before this person finally answered the phone. It was Shirley Zailo.
She explained to Nikki (and Jeff, when he asked her about this) that she was actually trying to contact her secretary, also named Nikki, and didn’t know how the contact information for Lindsay’s friend had even gotten into her phone. She denied putting on an accent or that there was anything otherwise odd about the call. It’s unclear if law enforcement ever looked into this.
It is important to note, however, that the Saanich Police Department has stated publicly that no one in the Zailo family is considered a suspect.
Other Developments
Jeff Buziak has remained deeply committed to seeking justice for his daughter. He also hosts an annual walk in her honor to continue raising awareness for her case.
In August 2017, a commenter left a disturbing message on Jeff’s website, saying “I killed Lindsey (sic) and stupid cops will never prove it.” It’s unclear if this individual has ever been identified or looked into as a person of interest, though.
In 2020, law enforcement revealed that they are aware of two cell phones in connection with Lindsay’s case—the one that had actually been used to contact her and a second one that was used to check that phone’s voicemail.
Additionally, they said that Lindsay had “violent criminals” in her Facebook friends list and it was speculated that this “may have played a role” in her murder. But nothing further has been said about this.
Interestingly, when investigators looked through her social media accounts, they discovered that she’d received no messages on Facebook from January 24th to February 3rd, which was notably odd since she otherwise received and sent many messages on there.
It is believed that someone might have accessed her account after she was killed and deleted the messages that she’d received or sent during that time frame, perhaps indicating that the killer(s) was somehow implicated or revealed in these exchanges.
There have been no further developments.
The murder of Lindsay Buziak remains unsolved.
If you would like to support my work and make a donation: Buy Me a Coffee
I really enjoyed this article. I had major issue with the police always saying there are no "professional contract killers"---push a lot in US media and fiction as of late. Yet, they'll describe a scene of such violence as "amateurish". Pick a lane!
Either there are people who quickly, efficiently for money or everyone is an amateur outside of the military. Which is it?
Great article.
Same old story and only the actual murderer remains a question. She wanted to leave a possessive husband , with an even worse mother and they both apparently have money to burn. One or both paid someone to do it. Since it was a couple, check new GF's of hubby, sisters, aunts or perhaps even mom's friends. Betcha his mom smacked him good when he went straight to the body. Prayers for Lindsay's family and friends, may they soon find the killer and obtain some peace