Alleged Convicted gay Toronto serial killer Bruce McArthur has, as of April 2018, been charged with the deaths of eight men, most of whom are gay/LGBT+. Sgt. Detective Hank Idsinga has said police are reviewing cold case murder files dating back to the 1970s where gay men were slain in the downtown core or after leaving gay bars.
Police are not specifically naming whose cases they are checking for fingerprints, DNA and other forensic evidence, but do say that with new technology, old evidence once deemed not useful may now yield results. Here are the names, in alphabetical order, of cold cases listed on Murder Village that the police may be considering. Some of the names below don’t meet the profile, and it’s possible that they are considering names of victims not listed here.
- David Buller, 2001: A visual studies university professor stabbed in his office, whose computerized bondage artwork was printed just before his murder
- Thomas Cahill, 1983: A high school art teacher stabbed in his home after meeting one or more people at a bar
- Larry Callahan, 2006: An older man on disability, he was beaten to death in his home
- Dennis Colby, 1995: A heavy drinker known for finding other gay men for sex on phone lines (before the internet and dating apps!) who was isolated and lonely
- Cassandra Do, 2003: A sex worker sexually assaulted and murdered in her bathtub. Police suspect a black man named “Victor” is responsible
- Fred Fontaine, 1975: Beaten to death in the bathroom of the St. Charles Tavern
- Bernard Guay, 1977: Killed in Allen Gardens during a mugging, police are looking for 3 suspects
- Richard Hovey, 1967 and Eric Jones, 1967: Slain teenagers whom police believe were killed by James Henry (Greenidge) but they never laid charges
- James Kennedy, 1976: Found beaten and strangled with a towel wrapped around his neck, last seen at the St. Charles Tavern
- Brian Latocki, 1977: An obvious possibility, he was tortured, stabbed and strangled in his bed
- Sandy LeBlanc, 1978: Owner of a popular gay bar, he was stabbed more than 100 times
- Ross Magill, 2008: Stabbed multiple times, police believe he let his attacker into his home
- Nirmal Sawle Ramnanan, 1982: Bound to a chair and stabbed multiple times, police said there were no signs of forced entry
- William Robinson, 1978: Found “horribly mutilated” in his home after meeting someone at the St. Charles Tavern
- Bruno Seidel, 1967: A quiet, mysterious man stabbed multiple times in his home
- James Taylor, 1976: Beaten to death in his home with a baseball bat, police say a pickup truck was seen outside his home at the time of the murder
- Harold Walkley, 1975: Walkely was last seen at the gay bar Quest, but reportedly left alone. He was found naked on his bed, stabbed to death
Had you ever looked at this case? I wonder, given the area, if there’s a connection
Murdered Oshawa man likely died in 2005: police
**link removed**
In 2014, police found the remains of Gary Newman, an Oshawa man who had gone suddenly missing in 2005. He was on the phone to his mother and his wife. ““He was asking her (his wife) if he could stop by for a visit and the phone just suddenly went dead,” Bahadosingh told the Toronto Sun in one of several stories written about Newman in the years after he disappeared.” (Toronto Sun: https://torontosun.com/2014/05/09/oshawa-man–missing-9-years–was-murdered-police/wcm/bf1518f2-ef9a-4490-9573-263fdc9dc75e)
Based on the dozen or so articles I read, there is nothing indicating Newman was gay or M4M, so I would not be inclined to link his murder to Bruce McArthur. Additional links:
https://www.durhamregion.com/news-story/4522434-murdered-oshawa-man-likely-died-in-2005-police/
https://www.thepeterboroughexaminer.com/news-story/8207153-oshawa-man-missing-for-nine-years-found-dead-near-kirkfield/
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/police-find-remains-of-man-missing-since-2005-1.2637644