Toronto police say a convicted sex offender wanted on a Canada-wide warrant befriended a “vulnerable individual” and concealed their dead body in a Riverside apartment last month.
Rejean Hermel Perron, 52, was identified as the suspect in a Toronto police indignity to a human body investigation on Wednesday, after officers discovered a deceased person in the apartment located at Broadview Avenue and Dundas Street East on May 27.
While an autopsy revealed that the deceased, who was not identified by police, died of natural causes, Supt. Kim O'Toole of 55 Division told reporters that “deliberate steps” were taken to keep the body hidden.
“Police are deeply concerned that he may be sustaining himself by exploiting vulnerable individuals as he did in this case,” O'Toole said, adding that investigators believe Perron poses a particular threat to women and members of the LGBTQ2S+ community.
O’Toole said a community support worker, who was assisting the deceased prior to their death, called police after they missed an appointment which led officers to investigate the apartment unit.
She said Perron was forensically linked to the scene and was observed using the deceased's key fob to enter the apartment. Prior to the May 27 discovery, O'Toole said Perron befriended the deceased and the two were frequently seen together.
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 actions" involved in the 2015 crime, but did not elaborate.
Perron remains wanted on a Canada-wide warrant for breaching the conditions of his parole related to that conviction in 2021.O'Toole said there had been "no sign" of Perrson for a number of years until this "disturbing incident."
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-two, 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.
