The Toronto police force (TPS) has agreed to officially withdraw its application to march in the city’s upcoming Pride parade, following a joint public request from Pride Toronto and numerous community organisations.
The request came after members of the community expressed upset at the lack of investigation into the murders of six men over the past decade, each of whom disappeared from Toronto’s gay village. Despite ongoing concern, police only made real progress on the case this year, when they arrested 66-year-old Bruce Arthur for allegedly killing Andrew Kinsman, Selim Esen, Dean Lisowick, Soroush Mahmudi, Majeed Kayhan, and Skandaraj Navaratnam.
Police Chief Mark Saunders agreed to comply with the request, saying he was committed to rebuilding trust between the local LGBTIQ+ community and Toronto police force.
"My hope is that this move will be received as a concrete example of the fact that I am listening closely to the community’s concerns," he said.
"I am committed thoroughly to building a better, stronger relationship between police and the LGBT community."
McArthur is also being investigated for a number of unsolved murders and missing person cases, reaching back as far as the 1970s.
