By Terry Kinney
The Associated Press
MASON, Ohio — Nadya Ferrari-Veillette was thrilled. Her young daughter, an aspiring model, had gotten callbacks after a recent competition in front of Hollywood talent scouts, and she wanted to pack up and head to Los Angeles.
So when Ferrari-Veillette’s cheer disappeared on Friday _ what turned out to be the last day of her life, her boss took notice.
“She was sad,” said Randy O’Neill, owner of Colors Cafe, where she worked part time. “She said she had lost her baby sitter.”
But everything seemed fine with her husband, Michel Veillette, as he headed home that evening, said his sister-in-law, Eve Veillette.
“He was driving home and we were, like, hoping he was going to be at home before the kids were going to be in bed,” Eve Veillette told the Windsor Star newspaper of Canada.
Hours later, Ferrari-Veillette was found stabbed to death in her front yard, their four children were dead in their burning home and Michel Veillette had become the main suspect in their slayings.
Veillette, 34, was released from a hospital Wednesday and taken to municipal court for a brief appearance at which he told the judge he didn’t have an attorney yet. Judge Andrew Batsche set a hearing for Jan. 22 for Veillette, and he was taken to jail.
Authorities allege Veillette stabbed his wife and set the fire that killed the children. Ferrari-Veillette, 33, and one child, who authorities said apparently died of smoke inhalation, were dead at the scene.
Hamilton County Coroner O’dell Owens said Wednesday that the other three children also died of smoke inhalation. He said that their bodies had some injuries from the fire’s heat, but that there were no stab wounds or signs of assault.
Ferrari-Veillette and her 8-year-old daughter Marguerite had returned the previous Tuesday from Los Angeles, where Marguerite and more than 1,000 other child performers preened at a competition attended by agents and talent scouts. Ferrari-Veillette had called Amanda O’Neill, daughter of the Colors Cafe owner, on Sunday, excited that Marguerite had gotten two calls from agencies.
She told friends that she needed $10,000 for photos, lessons and travel, and that she wanted to move to the West Coast.
Another callback came Wednesday, and Ferrari-Veillette was even more convinced that she needed to move to Los Angeles, at least during the summer, when Marguerite would be out of school.
Ferrari-Veillette seldom mentioned her husband or what he did to those she knew at work or school.
“She said she was pretty much like a single parent because he was gone so much. She never said they had any problems,” said Amanda O’Neill, 21. “Now, looking back, I asked once where her husband was, and she said ‘Who?’ That was kind of weird.”
The mother of the Canadian-born Veillette, Louise Dufault, told Le Journal de Montreal that she doesn’t believe her son is guilty and that the family seemed happy when they visited her in Quebec at Christmas.
“They were madly in love,” she said in an interview published Sunday.
Veillette has been described as a self-employed engineer who traveled often. The family had lived less than two years in the custom-built home in an upscale neighborhood in Mason, about 20 miles northeast of Cincinnati.
Veillette is charged with aggravated murder, murder and aggravated arson. A grand jury is expected to decide whether the case qualifies for the death penalty.
The children were identified as Marguerite, Vincent, 4, and 3-year-old twins Mia and Jacob. Relatives plan bury the family in Canada, Owens said.
The Associated Press
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