In 2012, Ashley Milnes tied the knot with James Schwalm, a respected firefighter, at the stunning Craigleith Ski Club in the Blue Mountains of Ontario, Canada, after arriving at the private resort in a picturesque horse and carriage. Speaking to Wedding Bells magazine, Ashley said: “I’ve been picturing that moment since I was a little girl. I truly felt like a princess and isn’t that how you’re supposed to feel on your wedding day?”
However, fast forward to early 2023, Ashley, now 40, and her husband were on the verge of divorce after over a decade of marriage, having welcomed two children aged six and nine while residing in Collingwood, Ontario. With Ashley employed as a project manager and Schwalm promoted to captain, cracks began to show in their relationship, ultimately leading to Ashley’s affair with her boss in 2022.
When Schwalm found out, she changed jobs and they had counselling to try to repair their marriage. But Schwalm was secretly talking to the ex-wife of the man Ashley had had the affair with. He sent her a message saying he had strong feelings for her and she replied that she felt the same way.
Prior to the collapse of their relationship, Schwalm expressed to friends the looming possibility of a split but openly fretted about the costs of divorce and remounting the property ladder, evident in his multiple searches of “alimony” and “divorce” on his phone.
Just before 6am on 26 January, Blue Mountain Fire Services were called to a scene of a car that had veered off the road in the Blue Mountains outside Collingwood. Upon arrival, they found the vehicle down an embankment and on fire.
After extinguishing the fire, they discovered a body inside that was burned beyond recognition.
The victim was later officially identified as Ashley through dental records, and the car was confirmed to be a 2018 Mitsubishi Outlander SUV. It seemed that Ashley had lost control of her vehicle on the snow-laden road, plummeted down a steep embankment, and got trapped when the car burst into flames.
Upon hearing the news, Schwalm was devastated. He revealed that Ashley had left that morning for an early hike, and he had taken their dog for a walk just before she departed.
Left a widower with two young children, Schwalm received an outpouring of support from the community and Ashley’s grieving family following the tragic incident.
But there were unanswered questions. First responders noted the smell of petrol at the scene and observed that the driver’s window was open – despite the freezing, snowy conditions.
The oxygen had fuelled the fire. Moreover, Ashley didn’t typically go hiking in that area during the week, especially not in the dark amidst fresh snowfall.
Then, the post-mortem examination revealed something chilling. Ashley hadn’t been alive at the time of the fire and hadn’t perished in the crash.
The cause of her death was physical trauma to her neck, or neck compression. She’d been strangled.
Schwalm provided investigators with text messages that appeared to corroborate his account. Ashley had sent him a message at 5.23am, saying she was going for a hike and that the children were asleep and would be okay.
Schwalm requested her to fill up the petrol cans for the snow blower while she was out.
She later texted, “Eww I left the gas cans in my car, and it smells.” Another message at 5.46am read, “Oh, I have vertigo. I’m going to rush home.”
Was this the reason she lost control of her vehicle? Had the car caught fire due to the petrol she’d purchased? Detectives weren’t convinced.
CCTV footage revealed a shadowy figure with a large backpack fleeing the crash site, and police suspected it was Schwalm. Records showed that he had searched “alimony” on his phone, as well as “does a road flare completely burn” and “can you see iPhone history after deleted”.
Ashley had a $1 million life insurance policy, with Schwalm being the sole beneficiary. There was also a $250,000 policy for her two children.
This could potentially alleviate Schwalm’s worries about an expensive divorce.
Ashley’s son informed the police that he had woken up to his parents arguing on 26 January. He had gone to his mother who had asked him to fetch her mobile phone – but his father had instructed him to return to bed, which he did.
Was Ashley attempting to call for help?
In the early hours, around 3am, the son woke up to find his father in tears. His dad was putting on his coat, claiming he was going for a walk with the dog, despite the dog being in the sunroom.
It emerged that prior to Ashley’s death, Schwalm had enquired if it was possible to kill someone by snapping their neck, claiming he was settling a debate about Steven Seagal films.
A week following the tragic incident, Schwalm was arrested and charged with Ashley’s murder. Investigators concluded that Schwalm had strangled Ashley at their residence while their children were asleep.
He then orchestrated an elaborate scheme to make her death appear as an “accident”. Schwalm dressed his wife in hiking attire and placed her body in the passenger well of her car until the wee hours.
He sent fabricated text messages between himself and his wife to explain the petrol in the car, why the window was open, and why Ashley had “lost control” in a rush. He then left the children alone and drove her body, in her car, to the supposed “crash site”.
Schwalm soaked the car in petrol, with his wife’s body inside, leaving a window down to feed the flames. He ignited it with a lighter, later discovered at the scene, bearing his initials, JWS.
Schwalm had taken his mother’s car the previous day and left it near the posh Craigleith Ski Club, where he had tied the knot with his wife ten years before. After parking the car exactly where he told his mum he would, Schwalm returned home to get the kids ready for school, all the while lying about their mum being out on a hike, fully aware that her body was ablaze in a ditch.
In June 2024, Schwalm entered a plea of not guilty to first-degree murder but admitted to second-degree murder. During the sentencing hearing in November, friends delivered heartfelt impact statements.
They affectionately called Ashley “AJ” and praised her as an inspirational figure and an extraordinary mum. Her sister recounted how they had opened their doors to Schwalm following Ashley’s death to offer him support, only to be betrayed by his deceit.
“No amount of justice will ever be enough for the monstrous act he has committed,” she declared. “He sat there broken and grieving while we consoled him, even though he knew what he’d done.”
Ashley’s father, Ian Milnes, branded Schwalma a “pure narcissist”. “AJ will miss the kids growing, bandaging their cuts, consoling their break-ups, cheering them on to victory,” he lamented.
Ashley’s brother, David Milnes, expressed disbelief at how a father could commit such an atrocity against the mother of his children. “He left them alone in the home for hours after they had heard their mother screaming for them… How could a father kill their children’s mother and do it with them in the house? I hope that screaming haunts him constantly,” he remarked.
David and his wife have taken on the role of legal guardians for Ashley’s two children. Schwalm expressed remorse in a statement, saying, “I despise my actions and am haunted that they continue to hurt the people I loved and cared for the most. I am ashamed. This is where I need to be, deserve to be.”
Earlier in February, 40 year old Schwalm received an automatic life sentence, with the judge informing him that he could be eligible for parole after 20 years.
