Accused serial killer Bruce McArthur facing new count of 1st-degree murder

Toronto Police have given an update on alleged serial killer Bruce McArthur at a press conference today.

Det. Sgt. Hank Idsinga has confirmed that the 66-year-old Toronto landscaper is now facing one new additional count of first-degree murder in connection with the death of Abdulbasir Faizi.

This brings McArthur’s total count of murder charges to seven.

McArthur was arrested on January 18 and has since been charged with first-degree murder in the deaths of Selim Esen, Skandaraj Navaratnam, Andrew Kinsman, Majeed Kayhan, Soroush Mahmudi, and Dean Lisowick.

All six men vanished from in or around Toronto’s Gay Village between 2010 and 2016.

According to police, a focus of the investigation has been on the remains of at least seven people found in planters at Mallory Crescent, where McArthur worked and stored equipment.

Forensic specialists had previously identified three sets of remains from the planters: Kinsman, 49; Mahmudi, 50; and Navaratnam, 40.

Today, Idsinga said that the remains of three more victims have been identified — Faizi, Essen, and Lisowick.

Idsinga also said “at least” one set of remains found at the Mallory Crescent home has yet to be identified.

New Information

Police said they are still trying to identify a deceased man after they released a graphic image of him last month with the hope that a member of the public may be able to identify him.

Since releasing the image on March 5, over 500 tips about the identity of the man in the photo have come in from various sources.

From these tips, police said there are 22 possible identities for the deceased man.

Idsinga said investigators are working hard to identify him so they could potentially find a DNA or dental records match with the remaining unidentified remains.

Please RT. Investigators from Toronto Police Service involved with Project PRISM are appealing to the public for any info on the identity of the person (believed to be deceased) in this picture. Email: Detective [email protected] or call police 416-808-2021. pic.twitter.com/7DUK19gYrI

— Homicide Squad (@TPSHomicide) April 11, 2018

Idsinga said Wednesday that thanks to tips from the public, the list of properties the police are investigating has grown from 30 to 75. These 75 locations will be searched with canine units in early May.

Police are also looking into 15 cold cases from 1975 to 1997 to see if there are any links to McArthur.

Police are asking anyone with any information that could be valuable to the investigation should come forward.

See also

• Toronto police make arrest in case of missing men in Church-Wellesley area
• Accused killer Bruce McArthur charged with 3 new counts of 1st-degree murder
• Toronto Police charge accused killer Bruce McArthur with 1 new count of 1st-degree murder
• Police looking to identify seventh victim in Bruce McArthur investigation (PHOTO)