Image copyright Facebook Image caption Bruce McArthur was arrested on 18 January
Canadian police say they are in the midst of an "unprecedented" investigation as they search for more victims of an alleged serial killer.
Self-employed Toronto landscaper Bruce McArthur, 66, currently faces five counts of first-degree murder.
Three of those charges are linked to men who frequented Toronto's Gay Village neighbourhood.
Toronto's LGBT community had raised concerns for months about a series of disappearances around the Village.
On Monday, Toronto police said that Mr McArthur has been charged with first degree murder in the deaths of Majeed Kayhan, Soroush Marmudi and Dean Lisowick.
Earlier this month, they charged the 66-year-old with two counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of Andrew Kinsman and Selim Esen.
Esen, 44, went missing last April and Kinsman, 49, disappeared in June. Kayhan, 58, went missing in 2012. All three were known to spend time in the Village.
Marmudi, 50, was reported missing by his family in 2015.
Lisowick, 47, who police said lived in homeless shelters in Toronto, was never reported missing. It is believed he was murdered between May 2016 and July 2017.
Image copyright Toronto Police Image caption Clockwise from left: Majeed Kayhan, Dean Lisowick, Soroush Marmudi, Selim Esen, Andrew Kinsman
Police say Kinsman and Mr McArthur had a "sexual" relationship with the suspect but have not revealed any links between the other suspected victims.
Last December, Toronto police tried to calm community concern that there was a serial killer stalking the Village.
Now, they are in the midst of a full-scale investigation that spans across Canada's largest city.
Police are searching properties throughout Toronto for more victims in a probe that has expanded far beyond the LGBT community.
Toronto police detective Hank Idsinga said the investigation "certainly encompasses more than the gay community, it encompasses the city of Toronto".
Police say the dismembered remains of three unidentified bodies were found in large planters at a property linked to Mr McArthur.
They say they are unsure whether those remains are linked to the five alleged victims already named by police.
Over a dozen planters have since been seized from addresses around the city.
Police also continue to search his home and a facility he used for storage. They are also two unidentified sites the police plan to excavate.
The alleged killer has "taken some steps to cover his tracks," said Mr Idsinga.
Police are urging all of the alleged killer's landscaping clients to reach out to police if they are not contacted by investigators.
"We do believe there are more [victims] and I have no idea how many more there are going to be," said the detective.
Dismembered and skeletal remains of at least three people have been found in a backyard, in flower planters, of a property associated with Bruce McArthur. - CBC News
Toronto Star article with some background on the case.
There is a news conference going on right now. I didn't catch the names of the new alleged victims, but one was never reported missing, and the other was reported missing in 2015. Another went missing in 2012. The detective said, "We believe there may be remains at more properties." He also said that those who have used McArthur's landscaping services should check their properties call Toronto Police if they haven't been in contact so police can check their yards and gardens.
edit: Link to press conference/CBC article - "Det.-Sgt Hank Idsinga said investigators now have reason to believe McArthur killed Majeed Kayhan, Soroush Mahmudi and Dean Lisowick."
Majeed "Hamid" Kayhan is one of the missing men who was a part of Project Houston. He went missing in 2012.
Dean Lisowick was never reported missing. He was an "occupant of the shelter system in Toronto." Mahmudi was reported missing in 2015.
edit 2: Det.-Sgt Idsinga is now calling McArthur a serial killer.
"Toronto police investigator says they believe the victims are not all from the gay community. Extends into the Toronto community as a whole; going through "dozens" of reports of missing persons." -- CBC News
"'We do believe there are more' possible victims, Idsinga says. Dismembered remains found so far were skeletal; police have no yet identified them as any particular victims." -- CBC News
edit 3: Rewatching the press conference. Here are some things I thought I'd mention:
The Det.-Sgt said, "We do believe there are more [victims] and I have no idea how many more there are going to be."
"The last two victims that we've identified don't quite fit the profile of the earlier victims... we don't know how many more victims there are going to be, but it certainly encompasses more than the gay community. It encompasses the city of Toronto."
The bodies were found hidden in the bottom of large planters found within the Leaside neighbourhood of Toronto. (There was some confusion during the Q&A as to whether or not all of the planters were found at the Mallory Crescent property in Leaside. A house on the same crescent was searched last week.) Over a dozen planters have been recovered from various properties.
Police also want to excavate two areas where bodies may be buried. No remains have been found in public parks or public areas.
McArthur's business partner has been very cooperative with police.
The identities of the bodies found in the planters have not yet been identified. I should note that it was stressed there were "at least" three bodies found.
Police are searching at least 30 properties. They believe there are more remains at some of these properties.
Police are currently looking at people who went missing as far back as 2010. I wonder if these are the other two men who were profiled in Project Houston, who both went missing in the fall and winter of 2010.
McArthur was not a suspect during Project Houston. Project Houston ran from November 2012 to April 2014.
There is no evidence of an accomplice as of now.
edit 4: Toronto Police news release with photos of all five men.
Image copyright Facebook Image caption Bruce McArthur was arrested on 18 January
Canadian police say they are in the midst of an "unprecedented" investigation as they search for more victims of an alleged serial killer.
Self-employed Toronto landscaper Bruce McArthur, 66, currently faces five counts of first-degree murder.
Three of those charges are linked to men who frequented Toronto's Gay Village neighbourhood.
Toronto's LGBT community had raised concerns for months about a series of disappearances around the Village.
On Monday, Toronto police said that Mr McArthur has been charged with first degree murder in the deaths of Majeed Kayhan, Soroush Marmudi and Dean Lisowick.
Earlier this month, they charged the 66-year-old with two counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of Andrew Kinsman and Selim Esen.
Esen, 44, went missing last April and Kinsman, 49, disappeared in June. Kayhan, 58, went missing in 2012. All three were known to spend time in the Village.
Marmudi, 50, was reported missing by his family in 2015.
Lisowick, 47, who police said lived in homeless shelters in Toronto, was never reported missing. It is believed he was murdered between May 2016 and July 2017.
Image copyright Toronto Police Image caption Clockwise from left: Majeed Kayhan, Dean Lisowick, Soroush Marmudi, Selim Esen, Andrew Kinsman
Police say Kinsman and Mr McArthur had a "sexual" relationship with the suspect but have not revealed any links between the other suspected victims.
Last December, Toronto police tried to calm community concern that there was a serial killer stalking the Village.
Now, they are in the midst of a full-scale investigation that spans across Canada's largest city.
Police are searching properties throughout Toronto for more victims in a probe that has expanded far beyond the LGBT community.
Toronto police detective Hank Idsinga said the investigation "certainly encompasses more than the gay community, it encompasses the city of Toronto".
Police say the dismembered remains of three unidentified bodies were found in large planters at a property linked to Mr McArthur.
They say they are unsure whether those remains are linked to the five alleged victims already named by police.
Over a dozen planters have since been seized from addresses around the city.
Police also continue to search his home and a facility he used for storage. They are also two unidentified sites the police plan to excavate.
The alleged killer has "taken some steps to cover his tracks," said Mr Idsinga.
Police are urging all of the alleged killer's landscaping clients to reach out to police if they are not contacted by investigators.
"We do believe there are more [victims] and I have no idea how many more there are going to be," said the detective.
Toronto landscaper Bruce McArthur now faces three additional counts of first-degree murder, bringing the total to five in what police are calling a serial killing case that the city has never seen before.
Det.-Sgt Hank Idsinga said Monday that investigators have reason to believe McArthur killed Majeed Kayhan, Soroush Mahmudi and Dean Lisowick.
"What kind of case is this?" Idsinga asked rhetorically at a news conference. "It's a serial killer."
Toronto police declare Bruce McArthur an alleged serial killer1:35
Idsinga said there may be even more victims who have yet to be identified.
"We do believe there are more and I have no idea how many more there are going to be."
McArthur, 66, was previously charged with two counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of Selim Esen and Andrew Kinsman, who both disappeared in 2017.
Police say Kayhan went missing in October 2012 and Mahmudi in August 2015. They believe Lisowick was killed in 2016 or 2017.
Remains found in planters
Idsinga said police discovered dismembered remains in the bottom of large planters after searching a property linked to McArthur at Mallory Crescent in midtown Toronto.
"There's at least the remains of three people among those body parts," said Idsinga.
McArthur now faces first-degree murder charges in the deaths of Majeed Kayhan, Soroush Mahmudi and Dean Lisowick, left to right. (Toronto Police Service)
He added that more DNA and other analysis is being done on the remains to determine the exact identities of the victims.
Karen Fraser lived at the Mallory Crescent property with her husband and told CBC's As It Happens McArthur would often store equipment — including large planters like the ones where the body parts were found — on her property in exchange for cutting grass.
McArthur would do more for her, including helping her with charity work, she added.
"He has been kind, helpful, helped with our charity work, doing floral gifts for silent auctions," she said. "He went above and beyond what our original agreement was to cut the grass."
Toronto police probed a home linked to Bruce McArthur, located on Mallory Crescent in the area of Bayview and Moore avenues. Although McArthur didn't live there, he did landscaping work for the couple who lived at the property and stored equipment there. (Mehrdad Nazarahari/CBC)
Fraser said she now struggles to fall sleep and thinks about how some of the alleged victims were immigrants.
"I know sometimes they feel incredibly vulnerable. A lot of them are here without family," she said.
"I picture these men, glad to be making friends. They found a community. They really think that their new life is going to be maybe more than they ever dreamed possible — and then that someone took advantage. The terror, the horror — that's what I have real trouble with"
Other sites to be searched
Since McArthur's arrest, police have identified approximately 30 properties where the self-employed landscaper may have worked.
Idsinga said police have searched the majority of the properties, and urged anyone who may have employed McArthur to contact them so they can search the area where he may have worked.
"He's taken some steps to cover his tracks and we have to uncover these victims," Idsinga said.
Investigators have also seized other planters to go through and have identified at least two other sites to be excavated.
Toronto police recovered body parts of 'at least' three victims inside planters at the Mallory Crescent home. (CBC)
'Unprecedented' investigation
Idsinga also confirmed that McArthur was first identified as a suspect in September in connection with Kinsman's disappearance.
Officers arrested him after uncovering evidence that also linked McArthur to Esen's death.
The ensuing investigation has required "unprecedented" resources, police said.
"We've never seen anything quite like this with the number of crime scenes that we have to process," Idsinga said.
