Stories of Murder in Toronto's Gay Village
Tess Richey, 22, was out celebrating on November 24, 2017, with friend Ryley Simard at Crews & Tangos, a Gay Village drag bar, although Richey is not LGBTQ+. They left the bar at approximately 1:30am, heading north toward Dundonald Street where they hung out with a friend of Richey’s on her front porch. With them … Read more
A day after Toronto’s Pride festivities in June 2017, Andrew Kinsman, 49, dropped out of sight, the New York Times reported. He missed his volunteer shift at a food bank. His cat went unfed. Police said he was last seen on Monday, June 26, near Parliament and Winchester streets in Cabbagetown, an area that borders … Read more
On June 19, 2017, Bill C-16 received Royal Assent (became law). Bill C-16 amended the Canadian Human Rights Act and the Criminal Code, to protect gender identity and expression.
At a news conference on Thursday, January 18, 2018, Homicide Det.-Sgt. Hank Idsinga of the Toronto police announced that a man had been arrested that morning and charged with first-degree murder. He was Bruce McArthur, a 66-year-old self-employed landscaper from Thorncliffe Park. The two men named in the charges were Selim Esen and Andrew Kinsman. … Read more
On Monday, January 29, 2018, Det.-Sgt. Hank Idsinga told reporters that Toronto police had laid three more counts of first-degree murder against Bruce McArthur, a 66-year-old landscaper. The new charges named Majeed Kayhan, Soroush Mahmudi and Dean Lisowick. McArthur was already charged in the deaths of Andrew Kinsman and Selim Esen. “What kind of case … Read more
On the night of Tuesday, December 15, 2015, Donna Maloney was wrapping Christmas presents at her home on McGill Street in downtown Toronto. She heard screams, the Crown told a jury in May 2018. She went to her door. She saw a man standing over another man and stabbing him. “What are you doing?” Maloney … Read more
On Monday, March 5, 2018, Det.-Sgt. Hank Idsinga of the Toronto police homicide squad displayed a photograph of a dead man at a press conference. Police believed he was another victim of Bruce McArthur, a 66-year-old landscaper charged with first-degree murder in six deaths. They did not know his name. Idsinga said investigators had used … Read more
Early on a Saturday morning in August 2015, Soroush Mahmudi woke before his stepson and left him breakfast. Then he went out the door. His wife, Fareena Marezook, told the Toronto Star that he did not come home that day. The Star reported that police now believe that was the day he was killed. He … Read more
At about 6:30 p.m. on Saturday, January 10, 2015, a resident of 330 Jarvis Street received a visit from a friend who had disturbing news. There was a pool of blood in the elevator. The resident told CBC News he called building security. Toronto police took a call at 6:34 p.m., the Toronto Star reported. … Read more
In October 2012, a man walking down a street saw a poster of Majeed Kayhan on a telephone pole. “Missing,” he told W5 in 2018. W5 identified him only as Chris and hid his face. Chris said he and Kayhan had gone on a few dates and then settled into friendship. Kayhan was 58. According … Read more
The body of Allan Lanteigne, 49, was found still dressed in his coat, face down in the front foyer of his home on March 3, 2011 just before 3:30p.m. He had been beaten to death. Lanteigne was a caterer and an accounting clerk at the University of Toronto and, when he did not show up … Read more
On the morning of Wednesday, April 11, 2018, Bruce McArthur appeared by video in a College Park courtroom in Toronto. The Toronto Star reported that the room was moderately full. McArthur, 66, a self-employed landscaper, wore an orange jumpsuit and stood close to the camera. A seventh charge of first-degree murder was filed against him. … Read more
On September 19, 2010, Navaseelan Navaratnam posted on Facebook that his brother in Canada was missing. “Hope he is fine,” he wrote, and he said there had been “12 days no news of him.” Two days later he posted again, in capital letters, asking anyone in Toronto who could help find his brother to contact … Read more
On the afternoon of Wednesday, November 4, 2009, a family friend went to check on Gerald Robert Brown at his home on Bedford Road in Toronto’s Annex. She had not heard from him in days, the National Post reported. His entrance, at the back of the house, was unlocked. She found his body and called … Read more
Christopher John Andrew Skinner was 27 when he was purposefully struck and killed by an SUV on October 28, 2009. He was killed in Toronto’s Entertainment District at Adelaide St. East and Victoria Street and police immediately began searching for CCTV and security video footage from businesses in the area. He was engaged and planning … Read more