A convicted sex offender who allegedly hid the body of a vulnerable individual in a Toronto apartment is now wanted on additional charges, police announced on Wednesday.
Rejean Hermel Perron, 52, is still at large after investigators identified him as a suspect in an indignity to a human body investigation last month. Police allege in that case that Perron befriended a resident of the city’s Riverside neighbourhood and took “deliberate steps” to keep their body hidden in their apartment after they died.
Police said that the deceased, who has not been identified, died of natural causes and was frequently seen with the accused before their death. Their body was discovered on May 27 and police said Perron was forensically linked to the scene. Perron was also observed using the deceased's key fob to enter the apartment, police added.
In a news release issued Wednesday, police said that Perron is now facing four new charges, including sexual assault, assault, uttering threats and forcible confinement, after investigators received additional information following the June 26 news conference.
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Police told CTV News Toronto that the new charges stem from an incident in the ‘90s.
“Police continue to look for this suspect, and are still seeking the public to come forward with any information,” a Toronto police spokesperson said in an email.
Suspect may be 'exploiting' additional vulnerable individuals: police
In 2015, Perron was charged and later convicted of kidnapping and sexually assaulting a sex trade worker.
At the time, police said that the victim was held against her will in an east-end home for five days before she was able to break free and run to safety. Police also said that there was some “form of ritualistic action" involved in the 2015 crime, but did not elaborate.
Prior to the June news conference, Perron was wanted on a Canada-wide warrant for breaching the conditions of his parole related to that conviction in 2021. Supt. Kim O'Toole of 55 Division said there had been "no sign" of Perron for a number of years until the body was discovered on May 27.
“Police are deeply concerned that he may be sustaining himself by exploiting vulnerable individuals as he did in this case,” O'Toole said at the time, adding that investigators believe Perron poses a particular threat to women and members of the LGBTQ2S+ community.
She said investigators believe Perron is still in the Toronto area and is known to frequent the downtown’s east side. He has also spent time in Kingston and Chatham-Kent, Ont.
Perron is described by police as five-foot-seven to five-foot-10 inches tall, with dark hair, blue eyes, a thin build and a possibly pock-marked face.
He may also be using the aliases Daniel Joseph Christie, Kristy, or Krysty, police said.
“We believe people have seen Perron and in particular we are seeking help form those people who work with vulnerable people in these communities,” O’Toole said.
Perron was serving a three-year sentence at Bath Institution, near Kingston, Ont., prior to his release in 2021. O’Toole said Perron left Bath without any government ID and he does not have any bank accounts listed in his name. To that end, O’Toole said police have no way of tracking him.
“We don’t know how he’s supporting himself. We suspect that he is preying on vulnerable individuals to make his way through life while he is wanted on this Canada-wide warrant,” she said.