Police probe work on alleged serial killer

TORONTO — A veteran detective leading the investigation into alleged serial killer Bruce McArthur said Wednesday that in the course of his work on the case, he came across “concerning” information that has now triggered an internal police probe.

Det. Sgt. Hank Idsinga said he became aware of the information after reviewing two previous police investigations into five missing men from Toronto’s gay village.

“I saw something I felt needed to be investigated further,” he said in an interview.

Last week, Idsinga prepared a report with his findings and sent it to the force’s professional standards unit.

“I think you should take a look at this because we’re accountable for what we do,” he said he told the internal investigators.

Police spokeswoman Meaghan Gray said the force’s professional standards unit launched the internal investigation on Monday, but declined to discuss the nature of the information that prompted the probe.

Two sources with knowledge of the case, but who did not want their names used because they were not authorized to speak publicly, told the Canadian Press that the “concerning” information was linked to a police interview with McArthur years ago for an unrelated incident.

The sources stressed it had nothing to do with the missing men, but said Idsinga and his team didn’t know about the McArthur interview until some time after they arrested him on Jan. 18, 2018, when they charged him with two counts of firstdegree murder.

McArthur, a 66-year-old, selfemployed landscaper, has since been charged with four more counts of first-degree murder. All six alleged victims had ties to the city’s gay village.

Members of the city’s LGBTQ community have complained for years that police were ignoring their concerns about a possible serial killer on the loose. Late last year, Toronto police assured the community that there was no known link among the various missing person cases.

Gray said police were aware of the concerns and willing to work with the community to find solutions.

“We know this information will be disappointing to some members of the community,” she said in a statement.