Melissa Connor, a forensic science professor at Colorado Mesa University and director of the Forensic Investigation Research Station, is serving as an expert on body decay and forensics for a serial murder case in Toronto, Canada.
The case involves Bruce McArthur, 66, accused of killing seven of his dates in Toronto over the course of several years.
McArthur, a landscaper by profession buried the remains of his victims in plant potters and, until 2017, escaped the police. All of McArthur’s alleged victims were fellow LGBT men residing in Toronto’s Gay Village or that he met through dating websites.
Police are still investigating the crimes of McArthur and have now turned to missing person’s reports to connect him with other murders. They are continuing to identify the victims of McArthur.
Connor, who has experience identifying and analyzing remains at mass graves, has been serving as an expert on the case for the press.
“What they have been asking me is mostly about decomposition in pots or why police heat the area under a tent,” Connor said.
“Every situation is going to be different but the major factors are going to be time, temperature, and access of the remains to insects,” Connor said in an interview with The Star.
As director of the FIRS, Connor has to work with families of body donors and is very sensitive to being respectful. She is very selective with the interviews she is willing to take.
“I don’t chase out these things, but I get a lot of questions and calls and I ignore the ones just seeking to sensationalize these things.”
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