How police tracked down a serial killer they didn’t even know existed

For decades, a serial killer in Ontario went completely unnoticed. No one had any idea he even existed.

His victims — Christine Prince, Claire Samson and Gracelyn Greenidge — were sexually assaulted and brutally murdered in Toronto between 1982 and 1997. But for years, not a single piece of evidence led police to suspect their killings were connected.

That all changed last week.

Using an emerging forensic technique known as investigative genetic genealogy, Toronto Police and the OPP say they were able to “conclusively identify” the man responsible for the murders: Kenneth Smith, who died in Windsor in 2019 at the age of 72.

The case has made headlines around the world, and police suspect there may be more victims. Born in South Porcupine, Ont. — and convicted of the rape and kidnapping of a 14-year-old girl in Barrie in 1975 — Smith left behind a lengthy history of criminal convictions.

Det.-Sgt. Steve Smith, who heads up the cold case unit at the Toronto Police Service, said his team was grateful to finally provide some answers to the victims’ loved ones.

“This was one of the cases that we were fixated on,” Smith said. “I know both the OPP and our investigators, they wanted nothing more than to solve this case, just because it was so unique. It was three vulnerable women minding their own business, and all three were taken, sexually assaulted and murdered viciously. So when we were able to actually say 100 per cent that Kenneth Smith was our offender, it was unbelievable for our investigators. Everybody was just so happy.”

Det.-Sgt. Smith is our guest on tonight’s episode of Village Media’s Closer Look podcast. He lays out in detail how the investigation evolved, how the killer was finally exposed, and what the breakthrough could mean for hundreds of other cold cases across Ontario.

Hosted by Village Media’s Michael Friscolanti and Scott Sexsmith, and produced by Derek Turner, Closer Look is a new daily podcast that goes way beyond the headlines with insightful, in-depth conversations featuring our reporters and editors, leading experts, key stakeholders and big newsmakers.

Fresh episodes drop every Monday to Friday at 7 p.m. right in your local news feed — and on the show’s dedicated website: closerlookpodcast.ca. Of course, you can also find us wherever you get your favourite podcasts.

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