The brother of a man who police believe was murdered by accused serial killer Bruce McArthur thanked the LGBTQ community for pressuring Toronto Police to investigate the deaths of eight missing men, but said it is “deeply worrying” it took investigators so long.
Omer Esen flew to Toronto from London, U.K., for the court appearance, hoping to catch a glimpse of the man accused of killing his brother, Selim, and seven other men.
McArthur is charged with eight counts of first-degree murder. He appeared briefly by video link Friday before his case was put over until July 23.
At the courthouse, Esen shared with CTV Toronto a statement from him and his brother Ferhat Cinar that says they still “find it hard to come to terms” with their youngest brother’s death.
They called Selim “kind-hearted, open, independent-minded and curious,” and that at 44, he was “too young to leave us.”
The brothers thanked members of the LGBTQ community as well as family and friends of the other alleged victims for “putting pressure on authorities for a full investigation.”
“As yet, we have more questions than answers,” they wrote. “It is deeply worrying to see that it took years for the authorities to act upon the cases of missing persons reports.”
The first of the missing men, 40-year-old Skandaraj Navaratnam, disappeared in 2010 from Toronto’s gay village. After two more men vanished, police launched Project Houston in 2012 to investigate the cases. Project Houston was closed in 2014 with police saying that none of their findings would classify anyone a suspect.
One year after the project closed, Soroush Mahmudi, 50, went missing. In 2017, Andrew Kinsman and Selim Esen were reported missing.
Meanwhile, Toronto’s LGBTQ community began to worry that the unexplained cases were more than disappearances. Posters were plastered across the Church-Wellesley village looking for Kinsman and Esen. Volunteer-led search parties were executed across the city’s east end, and the community lobbied police to dig deeper.
In Dec. 2017, Toronto Police Chief Mark Saunders denied that there was any evidence that a serial killer was walking the streets. One month later, McArthur was arrested and charged with first-degree murder in the deaths of Esen and Kinsman.
Investigators later searched a number of properties connected to McArthur, where they found human remains buried in planters. By April 2018, police charged McArthur with first-degree murder in connection with the deaths of eight men.
Esen said he will meet with police to discuss the McArthur case. He will also attend a few Pride events to honour his brother.
Their words come as the city prepares to hold its annual Pride parade without uniformed police officers, who organizers excluded from marching in the event for the second year in a row.
Officers will still be in attendance to monitor the crowds, but will appear without their uniforms.
The deliberate exclusion highlights the tension and anger that exists within the gay community against the city’s police, who many believe have not taken enough action when community members go missing.
While police have made progress investigating the deaths of McArthur’s eight alleged victims, Nicki Ward, director of the Church-Wellesley Neighbourhood Association told CTV’s Your Morning that there is still much anger within the community.
“Relations are going to take a very long time to be restored,” she said, adding that there needs to be “a massive shift in attitude” among police before there can be hope of rebuilding connections.
This year, Pride parade organizers plan to end the parade with a march entitled, “Until We’re Safe March.” Attendees will be encouraged to wear black T-shirts and armbands to honour LGBTQ members who have died by violence and those who continue to feel unsafe.
Pride Toronto co-chair Erin Edghill says the symbolic gesture is about uniting the community.
“That’s to signify that not only are we in mourning, but also our strength as a community,” Edghill said.
With a report from CTV Toronto's Tracy Tong
