MARKHAM, Ont. – Police have identified human remains in a decades-old cold case as those of a man who they say escaped from prison a month before he was found dead in Markham, Ont.
Investigators with York Regional Police say the remains were found on July 16, 1980, but could not be identified at the time due to decomposition.
They say the remains were exhumed in 2007 to attempt facial reconstruction and get DNA, but there were no matches when the DNA profile was added to the national database the following year.
Police say they used genetic genealogy to find relatives of the deceased person in 2021, and two years later, they identified the remains as William Joseph Pennell, a 26-year-old Toronto man.
Since then, police say they have learned more about Pennell, including that he spent time in a number of correctional institutions for a variety of offences.
They say he was arrested and charged with armed robbery and attempted murder while out on parole in June 1979, and escaped from prison in June 1980 shortly after being convicted in the robbery.
His remains were found a month later and police say that while the cause of death was undetermined, they believe foul play was involved.
Police say Pennell had told his case officers there were at least two others involved in the robbery he was convicted in, but refused to name them, believing his life would be in danger.
They say no detailed records related to his escape from prison have been found so far.
Investigators say Pennell had told a friend that he planned to flee to South America in what is believed to be his last contact before his death.
Police say they are working to identify more of Pennell’s friends and associates to try to build a timeline between his escape and the time his body was found. They’re asking anyone with information to come forward.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 1, 2024.
