I was just looking to see if there have been any unsolved or well known murders in the past in Hamilton/Ancaster. I must apologize as I really don't know the local history. I came upon a "paranormal" sight which is quite sensationalistic but wanted to post these two cases. I've followed them up with links which are a bit more "tame". I have to wonder if Ms. Gleave could have been touched by any of these horrible murders and harbored a secret that she might have been prepared to tell. In each story, there are a number of Jane Does or unidentified people. Does the song, "Amazing Grace" have any connection to these deaths? I'll do some further research tomorrow:
http://www.burlingtonghostwalks.ca/mystery.htm
Evelyn Dick - Black Dahlia Murderer In Hamilton
"In 1946 she was arrested for murder after local children in Hamilton, Ontario found the torso of her missing estranged husband. The head and limbs had been sawn from his body and evidence that they had been burned in the furnace of her home later surfaced. She was convicted of the murder in 1946 and sentenced to hang. However, lawyer J.J. Robinette appealed her case and won an eventual acquittal. However, in the meantime, the decayed remains of Evelyn's baby boy were found encased in cement under the floor boards of her home. She was convicted of the murder in 1947 and sentenced to 11 years in prison. Evelyn was released from prison in 1958 and quickly disappeared from public view. A series of serial murders started again shortly after her release where torso's of bodies were showing up in fields in different parts of Hamilton. No suspects could ever be found of the murders and the victims were never identified due to the heads and arms were missing. To this day, the mysterious murders are still unsolved."
and
"...Karla Homolka sought psychics to conduct an exorcism or whatever it would take to get rid of ghosts in the basement of her home where Leslie Mahaffy was dismembered. In 1993, Patrick received a frantic call on his office answering machine from a woman who needed someone to conduct an exorcism. The name that was left said, "This is Karla Homolka, Pleassse Call Karla!, I need your help!" This article later mysteriously disappeared and was wiped from the newspaper's archives. There is no record of Karla's Ghosts or Hauntings and over 1,000 court pages documenting her experiences are said to be sealed and locked away from the trial evidence. Just what are in those pages of her psychic sessions? Some of the sealed court documents are believed to include details of Karla's haunting experiences including performing Satanic Rituals and drinking human blood ...."
[photo of original article shown]
more at link
Also:
http://www.factualtv.com/documentary/The-Notorious-Mrs-Dick
‘She was a femme fatale, she was the Mata Hari, the person we most loved to hate, or hated to love, or something like that... but in most peoples eyes she was a horrendous murderess.' So begins the story of Evelyn Dick, sentenced to hang for the murder of her streetcar driver husband, John Dick. She was acquitted on an appeal that launched the career of Canada's most famous criminal lawyer J. J. Robinette. Evelyn eventually served 11 years of a life sentence for the murder of her infant son whose body was found encased in cement during the investigation of her husband's murder. Then with a new identity, she disappeared.
And:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leslie_Mahaffy
"Leslie Erin Mahaffy (July 5, 1976 – June 16, 1991) was a teenaged female student, resident of Burlington, Ontario, Canada, who was murdered by serial killers Paul Bernardo and Karla Homolka...."
and
"....Homolka, a veterinary technician, had access to sedative drugs which were used to subdue Mahaffy, the same technique the pair used in the rape of Homolka's sister six months before; the drugs used to murder and rape the 15 year old child...."
more at link
(I need to look at some sweet photos of kittens and puppies after reading that and before going to bed)
http://www.burlingtonghostwalks.ca/mystery.htm
Evelyn Dick - Black Dahlia Murderer In Hamilton
"In 1946 she was arrested for murder after local children in Hamilton, Ontario found the torso of her missing estranged husband. The head and limbs had been sawn from his body and evidence that they had been burned in the furnace of her home later surfaced. She was convicted of the murder in 1946 and sentenced to hang. However, lawyer J.J. Robinette appealed her case and won an eventual acquittal. However, in the meantime, the decayed remains of Evelyn's baby boy were found encased in cement under the floor boards of her home. She was convicted of the murder in 1947 and sentenced to 11 years in prison. Evelyn was released from prison in 1958 and quickly disappeared from public view. A series of serial murders started again shortly after her release where torso's of bodies were showing up in fields in different parts of Hamilton. No suspects could ever be found of the murders and the victims were never identified due to the heads and arms were missing. To this day, the mysterious murders are still unsolved."
and
"...Karla Homolka sought psychics to conduct an exorcism or whatever it would take to get rid of ghosts in the basement of her home where Leslie Mahaffy was dismembered. In 1993, Patrick received a frantic call on his office answering machine from a woman who needed someone to conduct an exorcism. The name that was left said, "This is Karla Homolka, Pleassse Call Karla!, I need your help!" This article later mysteriously disappeared and was wiped from the newspaper's archives. There is no record of Karla's Ghosts or Hauntings and over 1,000 court pages documenting her experiences are said to be sealed and locked away from the trial evidence. Just what are in those pages of her psychic sessions? Some of the sealed court documents are believed to include details of Karla's haunting experiences including performing Satanic Rituals and drinking human blood ...."
[photo of original article shown]
more at link
Also:
http://www.factualtv.com/documentary/The-Notorious-Mrs-Dick
‘She was a femme fatale, she was the Mata Hari, the person we most loved to hate, or hated to love, or something like that... but in most peoples eyes she was a horrendous murderess.' So begins the story of Evelyn Dick, sentenced to hang for the murder of her streetcar driver husband, John Dick. She was acquitted on an appeal that launched the career of Canada's most famous criminal lawyer J. J. Robinette. Evelyn eventually served 11 years of a life sentence for the murder of her infant son whose body was found encased in cement during the investigation of her husband's murder. Then with a new identity, she disappeared.
And:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leslie_Mahaffy
"Leslie Erin Mahaffy (July 5, 1976 – June 16, 1991) was a teenaged female student, resident of Burlington, Ontario, Canada, who was murdered by serial killers Paul Bernardo and Karla Homolka...."
and
"....Homolka, a veterinary technician, had access to sedative drugs which were used to subdue Mahaffy, the same technique the pair used in the rape of Homolka's sister six months before; the drugs used to murder and rape the 15 year old child...."
more at link
(I need to look at some sweet photos of kittens and puppies after reading that and before going to bed)