Barrhaven homicide victim remembered as loving dad

"Whoever did this left a two-year-old baby without a father," says the former partner of Wilson Sabarros. Police found his body last week.

Wilson Sabarros, 58, found dead Friday

Guy Quenneville · CBC News · Posted: Jan 13, 2025 4:53 PM EST | Last Updated: January 14

Ex-partner of Ottawa homicide victim says he was a generous person and a great father

1 day ago

2:43

Police say they were called to a home in Barrhaven Friday evening where they found 58-year-old Wilson Sabarros dead. He’s the first homicide victim of 2025.

The former partner of a man killed in Barrhaven last week says she's still coming to grips with his death — and speaking out in the hope it helps police find who's responsible.

Ottawa police are investigating what happened to Wilson Sabarros, whose body was found in a home on Pondhollow Way, as a homicide.

"Whoever did this left a two-year-old baby without a father," Nally Catala told CBC on Monday.

Catala was Sabarros's partner for seven years. They had a daughter together who's now two years old — "smiling, jumping like nothing happened," Catala said.

"It will be [hard] to explain to her in a few years what happened to him, to her father."

A man flashes a peace sign at a restaurant. — 'He was very generous men,' Catala said of Sabarros. (Submitted by Nally Catala)

'Not wanting to realize he's gone'

Sabarros was 58. Police found his body after 5 p.m. on Friday.

Catala said she let officers into the house but didn't find out Sabarros was dead until some time later, after she saw the ambulance arrive.

Police have not announced any arrests, and are asking anyone with information to come forward. Catala echoed that call.

"Any clue, any kind of information will help us at this point," she said.

A man, woman and child pose for a Christmas family photo. — 'We [had] our disagreements here and there, but he was a great partner to me, a great father to my daughter,' Catala said. (Submitted by Nally Catala)

Catala described Sabarros as a lovely and generous man, and a committed father. He has family in Uruguay.

"Today I was looking for some papers and something came to my mind, like, 'Oh, I can't find the papers. Let me call him to see where they are,'" Catala said.

"I believe it's something related to my state of mind — not wanting to realize he's gone."

Sabarros's death is Ottawa's first recorded homicide of 2025.