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Canadian landscaper faces sixth murder charge

By Danielle Haynes

Feb. 23 (UPI) -- The Canadian landscaper accused of killing multiple men and hiding their bodies in planters faces a sixth charge of murder, Toronto police announced Friday.

Prosecutors charged Bruce McArthur, 66, with first-degree murder in the disappearance of Skandaraj "Skanda" Navaratnam during a court appearance. He already faced five murder charges filed in January.

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Police said they believe there could still be more victims and multiple murder scenes.

Earlier this month, they said they recovered the remains of six people in planters on a property where McArthur provided landscaping services.

Police initially arrested McArthur in early January for the slayings of Selim Esen, 44, who went missing in April, and Andrew Kinsman, 49, who went missing in June.

Later in January, they charged him with the deaths of Majeed Kayhan, 58, missing since 2012; Soroush Mahmudi, 50, reported missing in 2015; and Dean Lisowick, 47, a homeless man who hasn't been reported missing but whom police believe may have died between May 2016 and July 2017.

Police said DNA tests confirmed the remains of Kinsman, Mahmudi and Navaratnam were among those found in the planters.

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The disappearances and killings linked to McArthur appear to center around Toronto's Gay Village neighborhood. Detective Sgt. Hank Idsinga characterized it as the work of a "serial killer."

McArthur was held at the Toronto South Detention Center on suicide watch.

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