Bruce McArthur, a 66-year-old grandfather, landscaper and mall Santa, has been arrested in the disappearance of two men from Toronto's gay community. There were some U.S. media reports in 2018 when Toronto police discovered dismembered body parts of some of the eight missing men killed by McArthur, on the property of Karen Fraser, an unwitting client who hired him as a landscaper. One widely published picture is of McArthur smiling at the camera as he posed at Niagara Falls. His 2002 Nissan Sentra was found abandoned on Moore Avenue,[145][41] steps away from the Beltline Trail, a small ravine which is a popular cruising spot for gay men. Video shows cop questioning Bruce McArthur before serial killer's release [182], Reading from an agreed statement of fact,[183] Cantlon divulged details of the killings, which took place in Toronto between 2010 and 2017. [40] Idsinga said that police knew "something was up" with the disappearances in Project Houston, that they had hunches of a killer operating at Church and Wellesley, but that he could not say it without evidence. On Oct. 21, 1989, a man's body was found in an isolated area . HUNTER: What made serial killer Bruce McArthur tick? They believed he entered a car sometime after 3 PM and left with someone. [209] The man alleges this happened in April 2017,[3] about the time that Esen disappeared. [213] No occurrence report was filed[211] and McArthur was not charged. [214][239], In mid-March, a group of LGBTQ advocates demanded an immediate inquiry. If theres no reason and its completely random its way too threatening. [71][68], On January 29, police announced that they had found the dismembered skeletal remains of at least three people in two of twelve large planter boxes seized from the Leaside residence. Serial killer Bruce McArthur used landscaper job to bury dismembered One widely covered story in the media was the account of a 52-year-old part-time university teacher[3] from Thunder Bay[209] who had known McArthur for about ten years. Bruce McArthur: Why Investigators First Considered Cannibalism | Crime News Perhaps emboldened by this newfound mobility and freedom, McArthur finally came out to his wife and family toward the end of the 1990s. Canadian serial killer Bruce McArthur used landscape planters as a McArthur spent years preying upon mostly gay men of colour and, in the end, in 2019, he pleaded guilty to murdering eight men. He had faced struggles including issues with substance abuse but was remembered as being very respectful. Earlier this week, the FBI concluded its investigation into the 2017 mass shooting at a Las Vegas music festival, when Stephen Paddock killed 59 people, including himself, and injured 851 more while firing indiscriminately into the crowd from his 32nd-floor hotel suite. Lives could have been saved: Family of McArthur victim Selim Esen calls for public inquiry, Eight men, eight stories: What we know about serial killer Bruce McArthurs victims, McArthur is the oldest confirmed serial killer in Canadian history. ", "Accused serial killer Bruce McArthur investigated for alleged sexual assault in 2016: police source", "Bruce McArthur case: Toronto police detective charged with neglect of duty, insubordination", "Man reported to Toronto police in 2016 that McArthur allegedly attempted to strangle him", "Officer involved in previous McArthur arrest charged with insubordination", "Toronto police officer to be charged with misconduct in connection with Bruce McArthur case", "WARMINGTON: T.O. Missing from the Village: The Story of Serial Killer Bruce McArthur, the Search for Justice, and the System That Failed Toronto's Queer Community, Crime Writers of Canada Awards of Excellence, "Serial killer Bruce McArthur will have a chance of parole in 25 years, when he's 91, judge rules", "Suspected Serial Killer and Mall Santa Looked 'So Normal and Business-Like,' Clients Say", "McArthur is the oldest confirmed serial killer in Canadian history. She was not contacted again by police, probably because her academic data could not be used in court. [108] On February1011 the search of the house was completed and it was released to its owners after more than three weeks. [123][125] McArthur killed him on or about January 6, 2016. rights reserved. Star Newspapers Limited and/or its licensors. He was, at this point, charged with the deaths of all five men from the Project Houston and Project Prism investigations. Toronto Star articles, please go to: www.TorontoStarReprints.com, Conversations are opinions of our readers and are subject to the, New details reveal how flawed investigations and shoddy record-keeping cost Toronto police leads on serial killer Bruce McArthur, It took a Village: Inside the investigation that caught serial killer Bruce McArthur, The Toronto Star and thestar.com, each property of Toronto Star [106], The police investigation had a continuous presence at the Leaside residence, often described as "ground zero",[107] and police established a command post on the property. A serial killer who preyed on men before burying their bodies in potted plants pleaded guilty to eight counts of first-degree murder Tuesday. His age may have helped him hide in plain sight, People are really just hoping theres a simple answer at the end of the tunnel, he said. [83] The Toronto Sun reported that McArthur's computer had grisly photos of his suspected victims kept as trophies. We dont like things that are unresolved, particularly when it involves something as heinous as murder.. [142][143], Five victims were noted by investigators for similarities: middle-aged, bearded, patrons of The Black Eagle bar, and self-identified as "bears" (gay men with overtly masculine traits). [21] The victim, said by the Crown to have been traumatized by the incident, did not provide a victim-impact statement for the sentencing, and there were concerns that McArthur's unexplained behaviour may have been due to the combination of his anti-seizure medication with amyl nitrite,[a] a muscle relaxant which is sometimes taken recreationally before sex. [113][115], Alloura Wells' family claimed Toronto police officers told them that her case "was not high priority" because she was homeless for several years. "He was the best friend, neighbor, relative, anyone could want," she told 7News. If you do not yet have a Torstar account, you can create one now (it is free), Copyright owned or licensed by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited. Notes are intended to briefly show commonalities, vulnerabilities and connections to McArthur. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. These three properties were released back to their owners by January 23. [85] Additional charges were laid and at the end of February, the investigation was expanded to outstanding murder cases, hundreds of missing-persons cases and sudden death occurrences, coordinating with other Canadian and international forces. A friend of Andrew Kinsman, who was murdered by Toronto serial killer Bruce McArthur, says a police apology isn't adequate after a report outlined "systemic discrimination . The source suggested that McArthur had targeted vulnerable men who did not have a fixed address or had not told their families that they were gay. [9] McArthur's mother was Irish Catholic and his father a Scottish Presbyterian;[10] both were devout, causing arguments in which McArthur supported his mother. Newspapers Limited, 8 Spadina Avenue, 10th Floor, Toronto, ON M5V 0S8. Investigators said they believed they interrupted McArthur from claiming his ninth victim. The group consisted of TPSB member Ken Jeffers, ASAAP board member Shakir Rahim, sex-worker advocate Monica Forrester and lawyer Sara Mainville who specializes in cases involving indigenous peoples. Early life. [6], McArthur was bussed to nearby Fenelon Falls Secondary School for his secondary education, where he met and began dating Janice Campbell, both graduating in 1970. [184][185] McArthur kept trophies from his victims including jewellery and a notebook. [58] Her disappearance was reported by her father in early November 2017, four months after her Facebook account went dormant. The victim called 9-1-1 after he escaped while McArthur went to the police and said the incident was consensual. [9], In 1979, McArthur and his wife moved into a house on Ormond Drive in Oshawa; by 1981 they had a daughter, Melanie, and a son, Todd. There was one job description that McArthur did not list on his resume: that of an undertaker. A note in a calendar led to the undoing of serial killer Bruce McArthur [54] They reported Kinsman's disappearance to police the following day. He was a manufacturing plant worker who lived with his wife. Idsinga noted the thoroughness required as the first murder was believed to have occurred eight years previously. [130] They collected human remains almost every day of this search. 2023 Toronto Sun, a division of Postmedia Network Inc. All rights reserved. He said that McArthur was always accompanied by an older white man, who appeared to be romantically involved with him, and a day labourer, usually of Southeast Asian or Middle Eastern descent. [18] Since 2007 or 2008, he was living in a 19th-floor apartment[9] at Leaside Towers[31] in Thorncliffe Park, a neighbourhood populated mainly by immigrants[32] about 5 kilometres (3mi) northeast of Church and Wellesley. In 2011, he told an acquaintance named Robert James about an incident in which he had been asked to leave a coffeehouse, which caused McArthur to knock all of the glasses off the counter in a rage. [23] The search of the property was extended to an adjacent ravine, aided by cadaver dogs[91] and members of the heavy urban search and rescue team. McArthur, whose full name is Thomas Donald Bruce McArthur, attended Fenelon Falls Secondary School in the Kawartha Lakes area. [112] A team of seven cadaver dogs, some on loan from other GTA police forces, were searching the properties by the second week of May. For three years, he was not allowed to enter the Gay Village. Lonnie Franklin, the Grim Sleeper in L.A., was also an elderly man.. In that time and era, the LGBT community was basically frowned upon and more so in that church, Lee said. Toronto serial killer Bruce McArthur sentenced to life in prison - CNN Unfortunately, for the eight victims a decade later, that psychologist's prediction was dead wrong. [257], Editor Kathy English said that the Toronto Star would continue to publish Facebook photos of McArthur as a journalistic duty to report reality. The documentary points to a tipping point after McArthur, who previously lived as a straight man with a wife and children, was outed to his family by a male lover. How Bruce McArthur's 8 murders fit a pattern with other serial - CBC He had post-traumatic stress disorder from the SovietAfghan War and was a heavy drinker. [203] In 2017, Reid theorized that the killer was a person of colour like the victims, later stating this was because serial killers tend to target familiar communities. [217] Gauthier had fifteen years on the job and was highly regarded by colleagues, praised for his work with difficult cases involving human trafficking. [39][44][45][46] An anonymous tip linking McArthur to Navaratnam and Kayhan led police to interview him[47] on November 11, 2013. He wrote that the reports were completed and available[219] from the night of the incident,[220] that he had spoken to Project Prism officers regarding it after they had identified McArthur's van, and that there were no complaints then. And most of them were immigrants to Canada, many of whom were leading double lives, hiding their sexual orientations from their families back home. Are the unknown victims of alleged serial killer Bruce McArthur hidden The investigation into the disappearances, taken up by two successive police task forces, eventually led to Bruce McArthur, a 66-year-old self-employed Toronto landscaper, whom they arrested on January 18, 2018. In mid-December, 519 executives apologized for their "mishandling of information" but placed full blame on the police. [80][92][51], Former homicide detective Mark Mendelson said the investigation would become "the largest Toronto has undertaken". But criminologists and sociologists have been studying the motivations for violence for millennia and we still dont really have a foolproof answer.. Hunter recalled the work of German political theorist Hannah Arendt and her term to describe Nazi war criminal Adolf Eichmann: "the banality of evil." [68] Evidence found in McArthur's apartment shortly after the arrest prompted investigators to charge him with two counts of first-degree murder in the presumed deaths of Kinsman and Esen.
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