Calgary police hope Netflix show brings more answers to Amanda Antoni’s unsolved death

August 1, 2024 Canuck

Nine years after a 31-year-old woman was found dead in her northeast Calgary home, police are hoping a new platform will bring fresh answers to her case.

The latest episode of Unsolved Mysteries, a true crime documentary series on Netflix, features the troubling death of Amanda Antoni, who was discovered in the basement of her Castleridge home in the fall of 2015.

Police spent 14 months investigating the incident, which was immediately thought to be suspicious, before ultimately concluding that Antoni’s death was accidental — caused, they deduced, by a fall down the stairs.

But on Wednesday, Staff Sgt. Sean Gregson of the Calgary police homicide unit said many questions linger around Antoni’s case and continue to plague investigators, family and friends.

“As homicide investigators, it is our duty to seek closure and provide answers to a victim’s family … answers without a shadow of a doubt,” said Gregson.

“In cases where questions remain, we do everything in our power to uncover the truth.”

A man and a woman hug in a room. — A photo of Lee and Amanda Antoni from the Unsolved Mysteries episode about her case. Lee was never considered a suspect in Amanda’s death. (Courtesy of Netflix)

It’s the first time Calgary police have worked with the Unsolved Mysteries series, and Gregson thinks the exposure it will bring could hopefully generate new developments in the case.

“It’s a unique opportunity if we need to reach a broader audience and [if] we have cases that are unsolved or we need more assistance on.”

Scene investigators found points to assault

In October of 2015, police responded to a 911 call placed by Lee Antoni, Amanda’s husband, who found her body on a Monday afternoon, after he had been out of town for the weekend.

Lee was not considered a suspect, and the couple had no reported instances of domestic violence.

Antoni was found in the basement of the home in a position “[not] consistent with a natural passing,” said retired detective Dave Sweet on The Homestretch.

A significant amount of blood was present at the scene, and it appeared that Antoni had suffered a severe head injury.

An autopsy by the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner determined Antoni died between 7 and 7:30 p.m. on Saturday evening, nearly two days before she was found.

Sweet said Antoni had no history of natural disease or suicidal ideation.

A man looks blankly into space. — Lee Antoni speaks in the Unsolved Mysteries episode about Amanda’s death. (Courtesy of Netflix)

Her death was eventually ruled an accident, predominantly because investigators could not find any evidence that someone else had been in the home at the time, said Sweet.

“There was no DNA, there was no footwear, there were no fingerprints. There was no physical evidence that would support that anybody else had entered into the basement.”

That said, Sweet added there was never a full consensus on the official ruling of Antoni’s death, given that so much was left unexplained.

For example, there was evidence that Antoni had been struck by a piggy bank which was found at the top of the stairs to the basement; ceramic shards from the object were found around Antoni’s body. A chair was also left upturned in the main floor.

Many questions remain

Staff Sgt. Sean Gregson, who worked with detective Sweet on the case, said the scene police encountered isn’t one typically seen in a regular fall down the stairs.

“So that speaks to why this is so unsolved or why there’s so many questions that do remain outstanding,” said Gregson.

“There still are lingering questions that you see in the [Unsolved Mysteries episode] … things that don’t make sense. Why didn’t Amanda go up the stairs? I think that’s one of the biggest ones in my mind over all these years. If she was injured and in the basement, why not go back upstairs?”

Gregson is referring to footprints that were found near the bottom of the stairs deemed to be Antoni’s, according to the Unsolved Mysteries episode, meaning that at some point during her ordeal in the basement, she was able to stand up and face the staircase.

Sweet said he has hope that the show will help bring Amanda’s family closure and give police more answers as to what happened to her.

“Of course, at the heart of all of this is a very loving, caring family who just wants to understand what happened to their sister, to their daughter,” he said.

“I think there’s always that hope that something will come through, that somebody out there will have information.”

The episode is now available on Netflix.

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