Crime Beat

Crime reporter Nancy Hixt reviews the case of Meika Jordan, a six-year-old girl whose life was tragically cut short; Nancy reveals the details of this case and the evidence uncovered by investigators in their quest for justice.

After a year studying abroad, Lukas Strasser-Hird had dreams to be a doctor; he went out with friends to celebrate when he arrived home, but no one could have predicted how dangerous the situation was to become.

Alicias disappearance leads to one of the largest missing person searches in Ontarios history; reporter Catherine McDonald reconnects with Alicias mother to tell the tale.

Catherine McDonald looks back at the impact of the murder of Jodan Manners, who was gunned down at a C.W. Jefferys Collegiate Institute hallway.

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Almost three months after she went missing, Christine Jessops body was found more than 50 kilometers away from her Queensville home; after an intense police investigation, a former neighbor, Guy Paul Morin was charged.

What started out as a party to mark the end of classes at the University of Calgary ended in a horrific tragedy; to add to the complexity of the case, investigators quickly learned the suspect was the son of one of their own.

New leads in the 10 year old case of a 42-year-old nurse brutally murdered in her home; her family questions why it is taking so long to make an arrest.

Shannon Madill had everything going for her; she had just landed an audition for a role in a television series; was looking forward to moving from Calgary to Edmonton; the audition was recorded on video; hours later she vanished.

The body of 40-year-old doctor Elana Fric was discovered by a passerby in a ravine just north-west of Toronto; the man arrested and charged for the crime sent shockwaves through Toronto’s tight-knit medical community.

A Calgary mother disappeared in March 2015. Months later her body was found in a ditch by a road construction crew. The autopsy revealed she was stabbed 75 times.

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A little boy had a sleepover at his grandparent’s home. When his mother returned to pick him up the next morning—all three were gone. That was the starting point of one of the longest Amber Alerts in Canadian history. Who would kidnap a five-year-old child and his grandparents, and why? It was a race against the clock to find the missing trio. Follow along as police uncover shocking forensic evidence and learn the twist that finally leads investigators to identify a suspect.

When a triple-murder nearly wipes out an entire family, police struggle to establish a motive. At the home, investigators discover a gruesome scene and identify an unexpected murder weapon — a crossbow. They also meet the lone survivor who fought for his life and barely escaped. The mystery deepens when a suspicious package is discovered, and the killer’s double-life is revealed.

Chantel Moore, a 26-year-old woman from Tla-o-qui-aht First Nation in British Columbia, was shot and killed by an Edmundston police officer who was called in to do a wellness check on her.

Jules Knox goes through the many twists and turns of a mishandled investigation, family outrage and an exclusive interview with Arlenes husband and the accused, Bert Westervelt.

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25 years ago, an unknown driver shot and killed Constable André Lalonde, known for his friendly nature and big mustache; Mike Armstrong explores the impact of this murder on Lalondes wife and two children, and the continuing hunt for the killer.

On August 17, 1994, in Kelowna B.C., eight-year-old Mindy Tran hopped on her bike and pedaled over to a nearby friends house to ask her to play; she was never seen again.

On September 28, 2011, 19-year-old Maple Batalia, an aspiring model, actress and doctor, is shot and killed in a university campus parking lot; security camera footage pans away at the last moment, leaving her last minutes alive a mystery.

It was a crime unlike anything ever seen before in Canada. The horror of the Wells Gray Murders forty years ago still haunts investigators involved in the case, as well as family and friends of the victims. In August 1982, David Shearing stalked and murdered three generations of a family while they were out on a summer camping trip in B.C. After a long cross-country investigation, police learn the killer was always closer than suspected. What was the murderers motive for such a horrific crime?

Reporter Caryn Lieberman reveals how Larry Arnolds murder investigation is linked to the 1997 killing of a 20-year-old woman hundreds of kilometers away in North Bay, Ontario. Sarah Whitehead was sexually assaulted and murdered as she left a mall. Both murders were mysteries that almost went unsolved, two seemingly unrelated cases, until DNA from a cigarette butt led police to the killer. A serial rapist and murderer whose crimes crossed provincial borders and some of which likely remain unsolved to this day.

An in-depth look at how forensic experts examine blood spatter to help piece together what happened at the crime scene and how it helped secure convictions in some of Canadas most high profile murder cases.

Five women have mysteriously vanished from near B.C.s Shuswap region over a year and a half, leaving their families desperate for some sort of closure. When police suddenly discover a body more than five years later, it leads to an arrest in one of the womens murders. But will it help officers crack the other cases? In the conclusion of the Secrets of Salmon River, reporter Jules Knox investigates why police are struggling to make more arrests.

A caring nurse and mother of three viciously murdered after a break-in at her home, while her 3 children slept in another room unaware of the attack.

Family and friends of a young mother become frantic when she fails to show up for work. An exhaustive search of her home leads to a horrifying discovery and an Amber Alert for her missing five-year-old daughter. Follow along as investigators take you inside what happened to Sara and Taliyah, how they tracked the suspect, and the motive behind this senseless crime.

Annie Hang-Kam Chiu was looking forward to retirement when she was viciously murdered; within approximately three hours, her killer had turned himself in; the accused surrendered to the police carrying a type of homemade looking bomb like device.

A German tourist travels across the world with his family to witness the splendor of the Canadian Rockies; without warning, a chance encounter and a single bullet interrupts their trip and changes their lives forever.

Glen Davis was a multi-millionaire philanthropist, well-known for his generosity; he and his wife donated millions to charities, including the World Wildlife Fund (WWF).

Terrie Ann Dauphinais, a young Metis woman, is found dead in her home; her death was deemed a homicide, but no charges were ever laid, and the case went cold; new developments in the investigation lead to a dramatic turn of events.

For seven years, Cindy James told police she was being stalked; when the Vancouver nurses lifeless body was found two weeks after she went missing, and no suspects, a coroners inquest is called in hopes of solving the mystery.

In a small town located less than an hour from Canadas largest military base, a rash of break-ins escalates to assault and then murder; tire tracks point police to someone above suspicion.

Police work to end a decade-long feud between rival gangs the FKs and the FOBs that has left more than two dozen dead, including innocent bystanders hit in the crossfire.

Homocide analyst John Allore tirelessly probes unsolved murders in his ultimate quest to uncover the fate of his sister, Theresa, found dead in Quebecs Eastern Townships region in 1979.

A cross-country manhunt ensues when a young Australian American couple is murdered, a much-loved university professor is found dead, and two teens go missing in northern British Columbia.

After a man fired a gun on a local playground and seriously injured two girls, outraged parents demanded answers from local politicians as to how to stop the cycle of violence terrorizing their neighbourhoods.

In an unprecedented case, an internet tormentor is extradited from the Netherlands to stand trial after targeting 15-year-old Amanda Todd, who died by suicide after being blackmailed and harassed over several years.

A man scouring for bottles in downtown Calgary dumpsters makes a grisly discovery, and a trail of forensic evidence leads police to uncover a deadly betrayal.

In the late 1970’s and early 1980’s a sexual predator was on the loose. Two little girls had heard about the man dubbed the Southwest Calgary Rapist, but they never imagined they would be attacked while riding their bikes one hot sunny day. At the same time, homicide investigators were on the trail for a killer. Follow along as Senior Crime Reporter Nancy Hixt shares the stories of those attacked and the steps police took in their hunt for a predator.

Neville-Lakes three children were killed by a drunk driver, Marco Muzzo, in a crash in Vaughan back in 2015; the driver, the son of a wealthy family, was sentenced to ten years in jail but is now out on parole while the mother is left grieving.

When a man walking his dog comes upon a neighbors garage engulfed in flames, little does he know the treachery behind it. When the smoke clears, a woman is found dead with drug paraphernalia nearby. But nothing is what it seems, and police are left combing through a web of lies to find the killer.

In 2006, 17-year-old Brigitte Serre was working her first overnight shift at a Montreal gas station when three men attempted an armed heist. Brigitte was murdered in the robbery gone wrong, stabbed 72 times. The killer was eventually caught in a cross-country manhunt and sentenced to 25 years without parole for the brutal slaying. But for the Serre family, the painful reminders of their tragic loss would surface time and time again as the convicted murderer applied for early release.

An elderly Mississauga woman is found dead beside Christmas presents she’d been wrapping. Within hours of the discovery, investigators receive a call from Niagara police about the attempted murders of two people living an hour away that they believe are connected. The ensuing investigation uncovers a story of betrayal, obsession, stalking and vengeance.

An innocent victim, 28-year-old Mila Barberi is gunned down while picking up her boyfriend, Saverio Serrano from work.

It was 1am on a cold, wet November night in 2011 when police found Leanne Freeman lying unconscious in a pool of blood. She later died in a downtown hospital, becoming Toronto’s 42nd homicide of the year. The 23-year-old Freeman lived a lonely, troubled life, on the streets of Canadas largest city. Addicted to drugs, she ended up being a part of a group called The Crystal Circle, named for their use and dealing of crystal meth. It was members of that group who became suspects in her murder.

After six men were coldly executed in a Surrey condo building, police scrambled to collect evidence and determine a motive for the murder. As they dove deeper into their investigation, it didn’t take officers long to find their suspects, but police misconduct along the way threatened to derail the search for justice for the victims’ families. Jules Knox reports on the rival gang dispute that claimed two innocent lives.

Three brazen murders in Kelowna, Vancouver and Toronto spark an extensive police investigation into the Wolfpack Alliance, a crew of gangsters running operations connected to Mexican cartels. The kingpins are quick to take out anyone in their way, leaving authorities scrambling to build a case against the killers. As Jules Knox reports, while a murder trial is finally underway, a cunning escape leaves authorities at a loss and the public looking for justice.

In 1983, Susan Tice, a 45-year-old mother of four was found raped and stabbed to death in her Toronto home. Four months later, across town, 22-year-old Erin Gilmour returns home from work and is attacked the same way. The women didn’t know each other, and both cases remained unsolved for decades.

True crime novels are often topping best sellers lists; to explore the reason of public fascination with this genre of storytelling, "Crime Beat" sits down with five authors pushing the boundaries of true crime.

Two brothers entered a bank with semi-automatic rifles; they demanded money and took everyone inside as hostages; the police arrived on scene and a hailstorm of bullets erupted, resulting in two deaths and many lives forever changed.

The popular resort town of Banff was rocked when a young female taxi driver was found murdered in 1990. Investigators worked tirelessly to come up with a viable suspect, but the case went cold.

It’s one of every new mother’s greatest fears. You put your child down for a nap, only to later notice muffled cries coming from the bedroom. What happened next lands Tammy Wynne Marquardt in jail for nearly 14 years and will haunt her for the rest of her life. Reporter Mark Carcasole shares Tammy’s harrowing story and learns more about the man whose testimony, she says, destroyed her life.

Reporter Caryn Lieberman travels to Kingston to hear from the families and survivors reclaiming their voices in order to tell the story of 34-year-old Yvonne Rouleau, tortured and murdered at the Nozzles Gas Bar where she worked at.

In the spring of 2006 Calgary Police received an ominous call from someone worried a woman was being held captive in a downtown rooming house. Officers responded but found nothing suspicious. Over the next few days two patrol officers heard similar stories from several other people as details got more and more disturbing– alleging a woman had been held, tortured and killed. How could they solve a crime they weren’t sure had been committed? And without knowing if there was a victim? Follow along with Senior Crime Reporter Nancy Hixt as she shares the details of Deadly Rumours.

In December 2019, 26-year-old Koshin Yusuf was coming home from a night out with friends when he was cornered at his Scarborough apartment entrance and shot 24 times. But why? All police had to start with was a piece of grainy video surveillance that captured the actual murder. Was it a case of mistaken identity? Did Koshin know his attackers? Crime Beat tracks the investigation and learns why the judge would later call it a stunning piece of police work.

Detectives are slowly piecing together chilling clues from a series of brutal sexual assaults and murders across the country. Teenage girls are the target, and police are starting to question if one of their initial suspects was wrongfully convicted. As Jules Knox reports, a Mr. Big sting operation led officers to a second suspect who was hiding in plain sight.

For more than twenty years, Mark Mariani suffered from Crohn’s disease. In the fall of 2010, he was told about medical advancements that brought renewed hope for a better quality of life. To celebrate he went to his favourite country bar. The following morning his family received a call from the police. Mark had been found dead in a northwest Calgary parking lot. Join senior crime reporter Nancy Hixt as she walks you through the trail of evidence police uncovered to learn how Mark Mariani came Face-to-Face with Evil.

On a sunny spring day, a man walked into an office in midtown Toronto and opened fire. There was panic at the neighbouring daycare and nearby schools, fearing a gunman was still on the loose. When police arrived, they discovered the shooter had killed two people, Arash Missaghi and Samira Yousefi, before turning the gun on himself. Initially officials did not release the motive for the attack, but his wife said her husband, 46-year-old Alan Kats, could not handle losing our life’s savings in an alleged mortgage fraud the two victims were accused of.

Australian Kevin McBride was known for being fun-loving and outgoing, the life of the party. So, when the 47-year-old window dresser and antiques dealer is found stabbed to death in his Toronto apartment no one can believe it. As police track suspects across Canada and the US, the victim’s diary is found 400 km away. It’s missing the page from the day he was murdered, but it provides a name. The problem for investigators – that name belongs to someone who can’t be found.

A highly respected, executive chef is weeks away from realizing his dream of opening his own restaurant when he is violently killed; the case becomes a true whodunnit as homicide detectives follow a complicated trail of evidence.

Evelyn Fox’s son – a father of four - was shot while trying to help a friend in trouble. Shauna Brown lost her son in a drive-by shooting as he played with his two-year-old daughter on the steps of their family home. Barbara Gill’s son was gunned down when a car pulled alongside the moving vehicle he was in and someone opened fire. It’s a club no one wants to belong to. Mothers of murdered men. What’s harder is knowing the killers are still at large and there isn’t enough evidence for police to make arrests. All they need is a single witness to step up. But what do you do when no one is willing to break the code of silence?

In November of 1999, 16-year-old Julie Surprenant disappeared without a trace. She was last seen at a bus stop just meters from her back door in the Montreal suburb of Terrebonne, but somehow never made it home. Julie’s disappearance is one of the most widely covered criminal cases in Quebec over the past 25 years. The main suspect was a neighbor with a long criminal history, but he was never charged. Just days before dying, the suspect told a nurse he’d killed Julie, but the confession didn’t make it to the police in time for him to be questioned.

Imagine there’s banging on your door. What you don’t realize is that the person on the other side of the door has a gun. For residents of a Vaughan condo building, just north of Toronto, it was a night that changed their lives forever in one of Canada’s worst mass shootings. Reporter Catherine McDonald covered the story back in 2022 and spoke with the only shooting victim who survived, along with her husband who fought off the gunman. She returns now to meet the first responders who helped save their lives.

75-year-old Teresa Santos was a bit feisty but regarded fondly by most. Originally from Portugal, she was a jokester who loved to bake for people and volunteered with the disadvantaged in her community. So during COVID, when it’s discovered that she’s been dead in her apartment for days, fellow residents are distraught. 48 hours later, that distress turns to fear when the autopsy reveals she’s been murdered in a horrifically violent way. Who would do such a thing – and more importantly – how did they gain access to her 8th floor apartment?