Human remains found in Markham, Ont. 44 years ago belonged to prison escapee: police
CTV
More than 44 years after human remains were found in a rural area of Markham, Ont., police are revealing that the deceased was an inmate who had escaped prison just a month before his body was found.
More than 44 years after human remains were found in a rural area of Markham, Ont., police are revealing that the deceased was an inmate who had escaped prison just a month before his body was found.
York Regional Police made the revelation public in a news release issued Friday, saying investigators identified the remains of 26-year-old Toronto resident William Joseph Pennell on April 3, 2023.
Prior to Friday’s news release, the identity of the remains found by a Markham resident on July 16, 1980 were a mystery.
According to police, Pennell had spent time in several correctional institutions for a variety of criminal offences and was arrested for armed robbery and attempted murder on June 30, 1979 while out on parole.
After he was charged, Pennell was “immediately” sent to the Collins Bay Institution in Kingston, Ont.
Police said Pennell admitted to his role in the crime to his case officers, but said there were at least two other people involved in the robbery, and refused to implicate them as he believed his life was in danger.
Pennell was convicted of the robbery in April 1980. Two months later, he escaped from prison. To this date, no detailed records about the escape have been located.
