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Idsinga originally said that seven sets of human remains had been recovered from an east-end Toronto home belonging to two clients who allowed McArthur to store his landscaping equipment on their property. The remains of Faizi, Lisowick and Esen were all identified from planters found on the property, Idsinga said, leaving Kayhan as the only alleged victim that has not been linked to them. At least one set of remains hasn’t been identified.

As the work with the planters nears completion, the investigation is set to expand as police struggle to determine just how long the list of victims may grow.

“I have no idea (how many victims there are),” Idsinga said. “I’ve said that from day one. I don’t want to hazard putting a number on it. We may discover cases from the ’70s, we may discover that 2010 was the first murder. We just don’t know yet.”

After spending months pouring through cold cases, police have identified 15 homicides that occurred between 1975 and 1997 that could be linked to McArthur. The majority of the victims in these cases, Idsinga said, are gay men. It’s unclear whether all 15 cases, like the seven murders McArthur has already been charged with, are linked to the Gay Village.

The time period of some of the cold cases aligns with when McArthur worked as a salesman for Eaton’s in the mid-1970s. There is no evidence, Idsinga said, that can directly link McArthur to any of these cases.

Idsinga strongly believes that police already know of an eighth victim — but have not been able to identify him yet. Police released a photo of the unidentified man — who appeared to already be dead — in March and received more than 500 tips. That number has now been whittled down to 22 potential matches. Police could have already charged McArthur with an eighth count of first-degree murder, Idsinga said, but want to avoid listing the alleged victim as “John Doe.”