Murder of Lindsay Buziak

Background and the Fateful Appointment

Lindsay Elizabeth Buziak was born on November 2, 1983, to Jeff and Evelyn (née Reitmayer) Buziak and grew up with her sister, Sara. By early 2008, she was a 24-year-old real estate agent in Victoria, described as popular, caring, and ambitious. Her boyfriend, Jason Zailo, was a member of a prominent local family with a successful real estate business. In late January 2008, Buziak received a call on her personal cell phone from a woman with a foreign accent who identified herself and her husband as clients urgently seeking a million-dollar home. The caller provided a name later determined to be fake, and Buziak was unnerved, specifically asking how the stranger had obtained her private number. The caller claimed one of Buziak's previous clients had shared it, but this was never verified. Buziak discussed her concerns with both Zailo and her father, but Zailo encouraged her to pursue the showing due to the substantial commission. To reassure her, Zailo agreed to accompany her to the appointment, though he would be running late. Buziak found a suitable property at 1702 De Sousa Place, a house at the outer end of a small cul-de-sac where the side and back garden fence ran parallel to Torquay Drive. She arranged to show the vacant home for 5:30 p.m. on Saturday, February 2, 2008.

The Day of the Murder

On the afternoon of February 2, Buziak and Zailo had a late lunch together, paying their restaurant bill at 4:24 p.m. They then left the restaurant in separate vehicles, with Buziak believed to have returned home briefly to change her clothes before the appointment. Zailo travelled to an automobile repair shop to pick up a colleague, and he was running behind schedule. Timestamped closed-circuit television footage from the auto shop showed Zailo leaving with his colleague at 5:30 p.m., the exact time of the scheduled showing. The two had exchanged several text messages that afternoon, and Buziak was aware Zailo would be late. At approximately 5:30 p.m., two independent witnesses saw a man and a woman walking up De Sousa Place toward the house. The man was described as a six-foot-tall white male with dark hair, and the woman was between 35 and 45 years old with blond hair, wearing a distinctively patterned dress. The witnesses observed Buziak greet and shake hands with the couple in a manner that suggested she did not know them, before all three entered the house together.

Zailo and his colleague arrived at the cul-de-sac around 5:40 p.m., about ten minutes after the couple and Buziak had gone inside. As he drove up, Zailo saw a figure through the home's front door glass. He parked outside the property for about ten minutes before moving his car to a nearby street to wait, later stating he did not want to be a nosy, interfering boyfriend. After another ten minutes passed, he sent Buziak a text message to confirm the situation was normal, but the message was never opened. Approximately twenty minutes after first arriving, Zailo approached the front door, found it locked, and saw Buziak's shoes inside through the mottled glass. Getting no response to his repeated knocks, he dialled 9-1-1. While he was on the phone with the operator, his colleague found an opening in the backyard fence, entered the garden, and discovered the rear patio door wide open. Zailo informed the operator the two men were entering the house and then ended the call. The colleague passed through the main level to unlock the front door from inside, and Zailo immediately ran upstairs where he found Buziak lying in a pool of blood in the master bedroom. He made a second frantic 9-1-1 call, and paramedics arrived soon after, pronouncing Buziak dead at the scene.

The Crime Scene and Initial Investigation

An autopsy revealed Buziak had been stabbed multiple times in what appeared to be a sudden, violent attack. The absence of defensive wounds indicated she was likely attacked from behind without warning. Her possessions, including any money or identification, were not stolen, and she had not been sexually assaulted, ruling out robbery or sexual assault as primary motives. Zailo and his colleague were taken into custody as a matter of procedure but were quickly released after their alibi was verified by the timestamped surveillance footage from the auto shop, which proved they could not have committed the murder. The Saanich Police Department has stated that Zailo has been interviewed several times over the years, has always cooperated, and has also passed a polygraph test. The crime scene itself yielded no DNA, fingerprints, or any other physical evidence, leading investigators to believe the murder was well organized. Police believe the killers were in the process of leaving through the front door when Zailo first arrived at the property at 5:40 p.m. This forced them to flee out the back patio door, through the fence, and to a vehicle likely parked on the adjacent main road, Torquay Drive, which aligns with the witnesses' statements that the couple was seen walking up the cul-de-sac, not driving. The investigation immediately focused on the mysterious couple and the electronic trail they left. Key findings from the initial probe included several critical pieces of evidence.

• The cell phone used to contact Buziak was a prepaid phone purchased in Vancouver several months earlier and had never been used until the calls to Buziak were placed.
• It was activated under the fake name Paulo Rodriguez, registered to a legitimate but randomly chosen business address in Vancouver.
• Cell tower pings showed the phone travelled on the ferry from Vancouver to Victoria the day before the murder.
• The phone was deactivated soon after the murder and has not been used since.
• Police were also aware of a second phone used to check the voicemail of the primary phone.
• Documents released in 2020 revealed police had discovered unusual internet activity associated with Buziak before her death.
• Investigators had initially suspected that violent criminals on Buziak's Facebook friends list may have played a role.

Theories and Investigative Dead Ends

Several theories have been explored by police and featured in media reports, most notably in a September 2010 NBC Dateline episode titled Dream House Murder. One early line of inquiry involved potential drug trade connections stemming from Buziak's personal life. In December 2007, about eight weeks prior to her murder, Buziak had attempted to contact a friend of an ex-boyfriend while on a visit to Calgary. That friend was arrested on January 22, 2008, as part of the largest drug bust in Alberta's history, accused of being a major participant in a drug trafficking operation. This timing led to speculation that Buziak's murder may have been ordered by a drug cartel who mistakenly believed she was a police informant. Investigators, including veteran homicide detective Dwayne Stanton and crime scene investigator Yolanda McClary, thoroughly investigated but eliminated this theory. They concluded Buziak was not an informant and that the personal, brutal nature of the murder did not fit the method of operation for a professional hired killer connected to a cartel. Another speculative link involved a separate, earlier drug investigation that led to the BC Legislature raids in 2003. During that probe, law enforcement had wiretapped phones belonging to individuals with a high level of involvement in narcotics trafficking in British Columbia and Alberta. Because of Jason Zailo's associations, phones belonging to both Zailo and Buziak had also been tapped during that investigation. However, this theory was also dismissed as Buziak had no known involvement with drug use or trafficking and was not included on any witness lists for related trials. Police also investigated the Zailo family's connections to the physical crime scene. The cul-de-sac, De Sousa Place, was named for developer Joe De Sousa, a friend and business associate of Shirley Zailo. Part of the cul-de-sac was still under construction at the time, and De Sousa was supervising work at the location an hour before the murder. Authorities have consistently stated that no one in the Zailo family is considered a suspect. A strange and unresolved incident was reported later in 2008 by Buziak's close friend Nikki, who claimed she received a late-night call from a woman with a strange, unplaceable accent that reminded her of Buziak's description of the killer. When Nikki called the originating number back repeatedly, it was answered by Shirley Zailo, who explained she had intended to call her secretary, also named Nikki, and presumed her son Jason must have added the wrong number to her contacts. Shirley Zailo has denied that this event ever occurred, and it is not publicly known if police investigated Nikki's claim.

Later Events and Public Engagement

In the years following the murder, the Buziak family and the public have maintained pressure on the investigation. Each February, Buziak's father, Jeff, leads an annual memorial walk in Saanich to remember his daughter and to keep her case in the public eye. In August 2017, the case attracted renewed attention when a comment was posted on a message board at the investigative website run by Jeff Buziak that taunted, I killed Lindsey and stupid cops will never prove it. A significant development in public understanding occurred in 2020 when the Capital Daily news outlet requested a release of public records, revealing previously unpublished investigative details. These documents confirmed police were aware of the two linked phones and the unusual internet activity. They also showed police had initially looked closely at individuals on Buziak's Facebook friends list, though this line of inquiry did not yield a breakthrough. The timeline of key public and investigative events since the murder includes several notable moments.

• September 2010: NBC's Dateline airs the episode Dream House Murder, bringing national attention to the case.
• August 2017: A taunting message is posted online claiming responsibility for the murder.
• 2020: The Capital Daily obtains and publishes previously unreleased police documents.
• February 2021: Saanich police announce advancements in DNA analysis have created new leads.

Renewed Investigative Efforts and Task Force

A major shift in the investigative posture occurred in February 2021, when the Saanich Police Department announced that advancements in DNA analysis and other forensic technology had created new, viable leads in the cold case. The department has since formed a dedicated task force comprised of investigators tasked with taking a fresh look at all evidence and theories. This task force has obtained specialized assistance from the FBI and maintains continued operational support from the RCMP. The renewed investigation involves several parallel streams of work designed to leverage modern tools.

• Investigators are systematically reviewing and retesting all physical evidence from the crime scene with techniques that were not available in 2008.
• They are conducting a deep analysis of digital evidence, including cell phone records and internet data, with contemporary analytical software.
• A key focus is on the potential of investigative genetic genealogy and advanced DNA phenotyping, technologies that have resolved many other cold cases.
• The task force is re-interviewing previous witnesses and conducting new interviews with individuals who may not have been engaged previously.

Police acknowledge that relationships and personal perspectives can change over many years. They are appealing directly to those who may have withheld information out of loyalty or fear. Investigators believe people familiar with circumstances surrounding this case remain in the community. They recognize that people who may have knowledge initially did not come forward due to close relationships with those who may have been involved.

Case Status and Ongoing Public Appeals

The murder of Lindsay Buziak remains an active and unsolved investigation under the purview of the Saanich Police Department. The case file number, 08-2682, is still open, and detectives continue to follow up on every tip and lead received from the public. The police maintain a dedicated webpage for the case and a 24-hour information line, urging anyone with information, no matter how small, to come forward. In their public statements, investigators have made a pointed appeal to the community's conscience, acknowledging that people with knowledge may not have come forward initially due to close relationships with those involved or concerns about their reputation. They emphasize that it is not too late to share information and that they have the ability to filter out innocent people or those inadvertently brought into the situation. The department believes individuals familiar with the circumstances surrounding the murder likely remain in the Greater Victoria community or beyond. The unresolved nature of the case was starkly highlighted by the 2017 online taunt, and the annual walks led by Jeff Buziak serve as a sombre reminder that the quest for answers persists. The task force's work represents a concerted effort to finally solve one of Canada's most puzzling homicides.

Questions about Murder of Lindsay Buziak

Who was Lindsay Buziak?

Lindsay Buziak was a 24-year-old Canadian real estate agent working in Victoria, British Columbia. Born on November 2, 1983, to Jeff and Evelyn (née Reitmayer) Buziak, she had one sister, Sara. She was described by family and friends as popular, caring, and ambitious at the start of her career. She was murdered on February 2, 2008, while showing a vacant home to a couple posing as clients, and her case remains unsolved.

How was Lindsay Buziak murdered?

Lindsay Buziak was lured to a vacant home at 1702 De Sousa Place in Saanich for a 5:30 p.m. showing on February 2, 2008. A man and a woman, whom witnesses confirmed she did not know, met her outside and entered the house with her. Inside the home, she was stabbed multiple times in an upstairs master bedroom. There were no signs of a struggle, theft, or sexual assault, and she was pronounced dead at the scene by paramedics. Her boyfriend, Jason Zailo, found her body shortly after the attack.

Were any suspects ever arrested?

No arrests have ever been made in connection with Lindsay Buziak's murder. Her boyfriend, Jason Zailo, and his colleague were briefly detained but were released after their alibi was confirmed by timestamped surveillance footage from an auto repair shop. The couple seen with Buziak remains unidentified, and despite numerous theories, no person has been publicly named as a suspect. The case is still open and actively investigated by a dedicated Saanich police task force.

What was the motive for the murder?

The motive remains officially unknown. Police have investigated theories including a potential mistaken link to major drug busts in Alberta and British Columbia. Investigators have dismissed connections to drug cartels, noting the crime's personal and brutal nature was inconsistent with a professional operation. The prevailing theory is that it was a targeted, planned killing by someone close to Buziak or her professional circle, perhaps with access to inside information from her real estate office.

What new developments have there been in the case?

Significant new developments began in February 2021 when police announced advancements in DNA analysis had created new leads. A dedicated police task force has been formed, re-examining all evidence with assistance from the FBI and RCMP. This includes retesting physical evidence, analyzing digital data with modern tools, and pursuing investigative genetic genealogy. The task force is conducting new interviews and following up on all tips.

How can the public help with the investigation?

The public can help by providing any information to the Saanich Police Department. Information can be submitted by calling the dedicated information line at (250) 475-4356 or the toll free number 1-888-980-1919. Tips can also be provided through the Saanich Police website. Investigators emphasize that no piece of information is too small, and they assure the community that they can filter out innocent parties, encouraging anyone with knowledge to come forward.

Sources and further reading

• Murder of Lindsay Buziak (Wikipedia)
• Investigation into the Murder of Lindsay Buziak 08-2682 (saanichpolice.ca)
• THE UNSOLVED MURDER OF LINDSAY BUZIAK (crimefamilypodcast.ca)

Checked by the Nosy Mag desk. Last updated 2026-10-20.