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A man who describes himself as a shy and helpless romantic at heart, a former mall Santa Claus, is now an accused serial killer who, Toronto police allege, buried the skeletal remains of his victims’ dismembered bodies in the bottom of outdoor planters and flower pots.

Parts of more human bodies may be hidden in planters or gardens at homes throughout Toronto. No one knows exactly which ones.

In an investigation unlike any before seen in the history of the nation’s largest city, police have charged 66-year-old freelance landscaper Bruce McArthur with five-counts of first-degree murder, most of the victims men who had been reported missing from Toronto’s gay village area.

The remains of at least three people were recovered from large planters at a midtown Toronto property linked to McArthur and where he may have previously landscaped.

Photo by Handout

Police are now working through McArthur’s client list, scouring some 30 properties across the city with every expectation more body parts will be found. Other planters have been seized, while two sites are being excavated where people might be buried. Police wouldn’t divulge the locations.

“We do believe there are more and I have no idea how many more there are going to be,” Det.-Sgt. Hank Idsinga told reporters at a press conference Monday.

Among the questions now, if the allegations are true, how long ago did McArthur start killing? Most serial killers begin their killing careers in their middle to late 30s, said renowned forensic psychiatrist Dr. John Bradford — raising the possibility McArthur has been active since he was considerably younger, and only now has been caught. “It’s possible there are quite a few other victims out there, and some of them may be younger.”