Mystery woman baffles cops
A woman who claims to have amnesia remains a mystery for Toronto police.
On Sept. 5, a woman who calls herself Linda walked into a downtown shelter, but could not remember anything about herself. She has since been transferred to another shelter in the east end.
Toronto police Const. Wendy Drummond said no record of the woman has been found in past registries of Toronto shelters, and it’s unclear whether she was living on the street before last month.
“Does she have a home here in Toronto? Is she from Toronto? We don’t know,” Drummond said.
Police have released a photograph of the woman and are asking the public to help identify her. She is described as white, five-foot-seven, 55 to 60 years old, 150 pounds, with straight blond hair and blue eyes.
Varying tips have been posted on the Toronto police Facebook page. One claims the woman resembles a brain injury patient from B.C., while another says she may have been in a Toronto shelter in 2002.
Drummond said police will follow up on all tips.
University of Toronto psychologist Morris Moscovitch said cases of “complete loss of identity” are rare, and typically triggered by a traumatic event — anything from a horrific near-death experience to the sudden loss of livelihood. A brain injury alone can’t result in such severe amnesia, he said.