N.S. news: Man charged in Justin MacDonald case appears in court [Video]

More than 30 people packed the courtroom at the Sydney Justice Centre in Cape Breton on Monday as the second person charged in connection to the disappearance of Justin MacDonald showed up in court via video link.

“Can I say, ‘Happy and sad?'” said MacDonald’s father, Ken MacDonald, when asked about his reaction to the latest arrest. “Glad that they got somebody else. Sad that (it involves) our son.”

Peggy MacDonald, the missing man’s mother, said it was “horrific” to see the suspect in court, even through a video screen.

On Friday, Cape Breton Regional Police arrested 36-year-old Ryan Joseph Pyke in Reserve Mines, N.S.

Pyke has been charged with second-degree murder and robbery in connection to the disappearance of MacDonald, 34, who was last seen on surveillance footage at a North Sydney gas station on July 7.

Police announced in November they were investigating MacDonald’s disappearance as a homicide.

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