Canada - Barry, 75, & Honey Sherman, 70, found dead, Toronto, 15 Dec 2017 #11

[MistyWaters]

SATURDAY SCRAWLER: Fence erected around murdered billionaires’ home
April 5 2019
"You can hardly see the house now because a construction wall is right around the property.

The murder scene may soon be gone, but not the memory of what happened there.

Or the mystery."

“It is a huge investigation,” said Toronto Police Insp. Hank Idsinga."
The case has had just about everything — except suspects."

“I am hopeful we will get to the point” where that changes, said Idsinga.

Det.-Sgt. Brandon Price is the lead detective on this active file.

“He is cerebral,” said Idsinga. “He’s a good thinker.”

From your link, after reading the first couple lines I pretty much could guess that Warmington couldn’t resist the opportunity to mention his police source. Sure enough. It’s as if this has become a real burning issue to him and as he still continues to write about it with such regularity I wonder if there’s more to it than we know.

“A police source also told me the Toronto Sun’ssoon-to-be printed front page with the headline, “They were executed,” would be incorrect since they believed it to be a domestic scene.

All of that was wrong, he said, adding it was way too early for any conclusion to be drawn. Police later designated it a double murder.”

 

[kiwi50]

No problem. I really do think the lab at Apotex was much larger than a one man operation because of the size of its operations. I’m remembering this....

“Apotex Inc., the generic-drug giant founded by murdered billionaire Barry Sherman, has been waging a year-long court battle against an ex-employee who was fired for allegedly stealing millions of dollars’ worth of pharmaceutical trade secrets from a laboratory computer—in the hopes of launching a rival company in his native Pakistan.

Court documents obtained by Maclean’s reveal the existence of a high-stakes internal investigation launched by Canada’s largest drug-maker in January 2017—and the urgent lawsuit that followed, aimed at recouping what the company describes as “highly sensitive” intellectual property of “enormous” value. Apotex is so determined to retrieve any missing data that, at one point during the ongoing litigation, company lawyers demanded that the former staffer be imprisoned for 45 days for contempt of court because he “willfully and deliberately” ignored a judge’s order to hand over USB drives, email passwords and other electronic devices believed to contain confidential information.

Mulazim Hussain, a veteran chemist who worked at Apotex’s research-and-development laboratory for more than a decade, was fired last year after the company discovered he had registered a private corporation and taken steps to construct his own generic-drug plant in Faisalabad, Pakistan. “
Barry Sherman’s company says fired employee stole valuable drug secrets - Macleans.ca

Looks like a lot of drama happening at Apotex in 2017, a real hotbed of intrigue.
I wonder if Jeremy Desai’s wife left the company at the same time as he did, wasn't she employed in the laboratory too.
I see Desai has a new job now, seems to be very interested in Medical Cannabis.

 

[deugirtni]

I’m assuming the registrant refers to the listing realtor but maybe not. Regardless if there’s no appointment to view, no one has the right to enter? There’s a long list of required adherence on this same link. Note the date as well. As I recall, this bulliten followed another media report of various lax procedures related to other properties, for example a customer allowed to view a home for sale unsupervised.

Lockboxes - RECO Website

• A registrant who makes an appointment to show a property that has a key secured in a lockbox must remain in attendance for the duration of the appointment, must ensure that the property is secured, and must return and secure the key in the lockbox at the end of the appointment. Under no circumstances should a registrant leave the property while other people remain unsupervised on the property. Nor should a registrant give the key to another registrant who may be following them into the property. If the other registrant is authorized, he or she will already have the lockbox code.

And:
“Unauthorized access, including access outside of scheduled appointment times, is unacceptable, because of the potential risk to real and personal property, privacy, safety and security of both buyers and sellers.”​

Registrant refers to any registered real estate sales representative, and "There are nearly 40,000 realtors currently operating throughout the GTA, the board says..." (https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/number-of-gta-realtors-has-doubled-in-past-decade-1.2643410) (Note: this article was written 5 years ago, so who knows what the numbers have risen to in 2019!).

Each brokerage is supposed to have its own policies in place to adhere to. It seems this may be an area however, where there are regular breaches. Seems like there may be some room for error since lockboxes are operated on mutual trust, and not all humans can be trusted to play by the rules. jmo. Not saying this particular fellow did anything wrong, but it seems it is certainly possible that the lockbox could potentially have provided a way to access the home with 'no sign of forced entry'.

It seems way too coincidental, imho, that the home had only recently been listed, and had *just before the murders*, been featured with photos and floorplans available to the public via the internet. I believe there was also an open house just several days earlier as well, but not certain if that was open to the public or just to realtors.

Out of 40,000+ realtors in the GTA, I wonder what kind of percentages we'd be looking at for how many of those may not follow the rules. I also wonder - if a realtor had NOT played by the book, and had, say, given the code to a client, never thinking for a moment that something bad would come of it, how many might fail to come forward with that information, knowing they were responsible for 2 murders and a huge fine, nevermind huge publicity and public outcry?

Listing brokerages

Lockboxes are to be installed only with the homeowner’s written consent, and after a full explanation of the risks and benefits of placing a key in a lockbox that can be accessed by other registrants. Sellers need to make an informed decision about the use of lockboxes.

At minimum, the explanation of risks should include the possibility that:

• The lockbox may be broken into to gain access to the property, which could result in theft or damage to the property;
• An unauthorized person could use the lockbox to enter the property by gaining access to the code or breaking into the lockbox; and
• Keys may be lost or the lockbox may be improperly closed, allowing unauthorized access to the property.

Sellers should also be advised of the type of lockbox to be used, how frequently the code to the lockbox will be changed, and where it will be placed. Lockboxes should be located in a safe, well-lit, secure and accessible place.

In addition, sellers should be encouraged to contact their property insurers before agreeing to install a lockbox, as the use of a lockbox may impact the seller’s property insurance coverage.

Brokerages representing buyers

The following guidelines should be observed by registrants who represent buyers when showing properties that can be accessed by a key in a lockbox:

• All appointments, whether for registrant inspections, consumer showings, home inspections, or access by other service providers, must be made and confirmed through the listing brokerage before entering the property;
• If a registrant anticipates being late for an appointment or cannot make the appointment, the registrant should communicate any change of plans to the listing brokerage as soon as possible to cancel or reschedule the appointment. The buyer’s representative may also ask the listing brokerage if a registrant employed there is able to attend the appointment instead;
• Registrants who have booked and confirmed appointments with the listing brokerage to see a property that has a lockbox installed must only enter the property during the time specified in the appointment booking confirmation;
• Under no circumstances should a registrant communicate or provide a lockbox code to a non-registrant, including a buyer, for the purpose of having the non-registrant open a lockbox; and
• A registrant who makes an appointment to show a property that has a key secured in a lockbox must remain in attendance for the duration of the appointment, must ensure that the property is secured, and must return and secure the key in the lockbox at the end of the appointment. Under no circumstances should a registrant leave the property while other people remain unsupervised on the property. Nor should a registrant give the key to another registrant who may be following them into the property. If the other registrant is authorized, he or she will already have the lockbox code.

Regulatory Oversight

RECO regularly receives complaints from consumers and registrants relating to early or unauthorized access to properties. Most complaints involve inappropriately providing access to keys stored in a lockbox. Providing someone with unauthorized access to somebody else’s home is a very serious breach of trust.

Lockboxes - RECO Website

 

[MistyWaters]

Registrant refers to any registered real estate sales representative, and "There are nearly 40,000 realtors currently operating throughout the GTA, the board says..." (https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/number-of-gta-realtors-has-doubled-in-past-decade-1.2643410) (Note: this article was written 5 years ago, so who knows what the numbers have risen to in 2019!).

Each brokerage is supposed to have its own policies in place to adhere to. It seems this may be an area however, where there are regular breaches. Seems like there may be some room for error since lockboxes are operated on mutual trust, and not all humans can be trusted to play by the rules. jmo. Not saying this particular fellow did anything wrong, but it seems it is certainly possible that the lockbox could potentially have provided a way to access the home with 'no sign of forced entry'.

It seems way too coincidental, imho, that the home had only recently been listed, and had *just before the murders*, been featured with photos and floorplans available to the public via the internet. I believe there was also an open house just several days earlier as well, but not certain if that was open to the public or just to realtors.

Out of 40,000+ realtors in the GTA, I wonder what kind of percentages we'd be looking at for how many of those may not follow the rules. I also wonder - if a realtor had NOT played by the book, and had, say, given the code to a client, never thinking for a moment that something bad would come of it, how many might fail to come forward with that information, knowing they were responsible for 2 murders and a huge fine, nevermind huge publicity and public outcry?

Listing brokerages

Lockboxes are to be installed only with the homeowner’s written consent, and after a full explanation of the risks and benefits of placing a key in a lockbox that can be accessed by other registrants. Sellers need to make an informed decision about the use of lockboxes.

At minimum, the explanation of risks should include the possibility that:

• The lockbox may be broken into to gain access to the property, which could result in theft or damage to the property;
• An unauthorized person could use the lockbox to enter the property by gaining access to the code or breaking into the lockbox; and
• Keys may be lost or the lockbox may be improperly closed, allowing unauthorized access to the property.

Sellers should also be advised of the type of lockbox to be used, how frequently the code to the lockbox will be changed, and where it will be placed. Lockboxes should be located in a safe, well-lit, secure and accessible place.

In addition, sellers should be encouraged to contact their property insurers before agreeing to install a lockbox, as the use of a lockbox may impact the seller’s property insurance coverage.

Brokerages representing buyers

The following guidelines should be observed by registrants who represent buyers when showing properties that can be accessed by a key in a lockbox:

• All appointments, whether for registrant inspections, consumer showings, home inspections, or access by other service providers, must be made and confirmed through the listing brokerage before entering the property;
• If a registrant anticipates being late for an appointment or cannot make the appointment, the registrant should communicate any change of plans to the listing brokerage as soon as possible to cancel or reschedule the appointment. The buyer’s representative may also ask the listing brokerage if a registrant employed there is able to attend the appointment instead;
• Registrants who have booked and confirmed appointments with the listing brokerage to see a property that has a lockbox installed must only enter the property during the time specified in the appointment booking confirmation;
• Under no circumstances should a registrant communicate or provide a lockbox code to a non-registrant, including a buyer, for the purpose of having the non-registrant open a lockbox; and
• A registrant who makes an appointment to show a property that has a key secured in a lockbox must remain in attendance for the duration of the appointment, must ensure that the property is secured, and must return and secure the key in the lockbox at the end of the appointment. Under no circumstances should a registrant leave the property while other people remain unsupervised on the property. Nor should a registrant give the key to another registrant who may be following them into the property. If the other registrant is authorized, he or she will already have the lockbox code.

Regulatory Oversight

RECO regularly receives complaints from consumers and registrants relating to early or unauthorized access to properties. Most complaints involve inappropriately providing access to keys stored in a lockbox. Providing someone with unauthorized access to somebody else’s home is a very serious breach of trust.

Lockboxes - RECO Website

Thank you for your clarification. It’s good to know the lockbox regulations are fairly strict, assuming they were followed.

 

[MistyWaters]

VIDEO
April 5th, 2019
Bloomberg - Are you a robot?

It’s great to see various media still continuing to show interest even though there’s no announcements of a major breakthrough in the case.

I notice Bloomberg’s video featured the same reporter who wrote this earlier media report, linked below. Either is a fairly detailed informative background piece for anyone not already familiar with the case.
Bloomberg - Are you a robot?

 

[Deleted member 102539]

Family of murder victims Barry and Honey Sherman giving Toronto police tips but learn information flow is a one-way street
By Kevin Donovan Chief Investigative Reporter
Tues., March 26, 2019

Private detectives working for the children of billionaire murder victims Barry and Honey Sherman are passing tips to police weekly but are frustrated the relationship is not a “two-way street,” says the Sherman family lawyer.

 

[Deleted member 102539]

What’s the source of 1,500 ongoing court processes? That’s a gigantic number as their website indicates the company produces only about 300 generic pharmaceuticals.

Idk, where I recently saw the sum mentioned. Will search for it.

 

[Deleted member 102539]

Drugs & Rock 'n Roll: IP Litigation Goes Big League - FindLaw

As Scott Jolliffe jokes, "IP litigation lawyers should erect a monument to Barry Sherman." Sherman is the founder of Apotex, Canada's largest pharmaceuticals manufacturer and maker of generic drugs that fill 42 million prescriptions annually. As one IP litigator quips, off the record, Sherman is "the devil incarnate to the brands."
-.-
With costs of $100 million to $1 billion to bring a drug to market, major pharmaceuticals have a huge investment to recoup. But generics don't have to make that investment. As Jolliffe points out, "The pure profit of the generics is one thousand fold that of the brands, so there's huge money at stake for both parties."

The end result is obvious. It pays the generic companies to engage in high-risk litigation in the hope that one suit will pay off. As Jolliffe again points out, "Barry Sherman will tell you that he needs to win only one case in a hundred for his company to stay very profitable."

 

[MistyWaters]

Idk, where I recently saw the sum mentioned. Will search for it.

I’ve noticed the number of 100 litigations at once mentioned but that was back in the day. However it appears all generic pharmaceutical companies battle back and forth with brand name pharma over past, present or future patent rights and it goes with the territory in that line of business. Although the media might otherwise give the impression it’s somehow unique to Barry Sherman and Apotex and the reason for that could be in Canada there’s not another similar company to compare.

Although Apotex is huge in Canada, it’s but one player in the global market of generic drug manufacturers.
What Are the Top Generic Drug Companies?

 

[deugirtni]

Thank you for your clarification. It’s good to know the lockbox regulations are fairly strict, assuming they were followed.

That's the thing though. Can we actually count on a bank of 40,000+ realtors to adhere to the rules, even when it is written by the governing body themselves that "RECO regularly receives complaints from consumers and registrants relating to early or unauthorized access to properties. Most complaints involve inappropriately providing access to keys stored in a lockbox." And those complaints received, whatever the numbers, are only the ones that are actually known about and reported. And even with all of those regulations, it seems there continues to remain inherent risk to the homeowners, since part of the regulations include informing the homeowners of all of the risks in having lockboxes on their homes.

 

[ldlager]

Thank you for your clarification. It’s good to know the lockbox regulations are fairly strict, assuming they were followed.

I spoke to a realtor friend of mine today in Toronto. She said no one is supposed to go into a house without a realtor being present- either an agent for the buyer or the seller. But she told me this is often abused by certain agents, with these agents giving the code to their clients, and allowing them to enter without a realtor being present.
I wiponder if the 1.45 delay in The listing realtor calling police was to allow her office to paper up documentation to ensure they hadn’t breached this rule during the term of the listing?

 

[deugirtni]

I spoke to a realtor friend of mine today in Toronto. She said no one is supposed to go into a house without a realtor being present- either an agent for the buyer or the seller. But she told me this is often abused by certain agents, with these agents giving the code to their clients, and allowing them to enter without a realtor being present.
And if it so happens that a 'client' may be given the code and be therefore able to enter without their realtor present, who's to say the client doesn't then give it to whomever and however many they want?
I wiponder if the 1.45 delay in The listing realtor calling police was to allow her office to paper up documentation to ensure they hadn’t breached this rule during the term of the listing?
Or possibly to get a printout of exactly which realtors had received the code, perhaps altering the list to potentially protect someone? But that would be too easy for police to determine after the fact, I think.

My comments in red amid quote above.

 

[Satchie]

I spoke to a realtor friend of mine today in Toronto. She said no one is supposed to go into a house without a realtor being present- either an agent for the buyer or the seller. But she told me this is often abused by certain agents, with these agents giving the code to their clients, and allowing them to enter without a realtor being present.
I wiponder if the 1.45 delay in The listing realtor calling police was to allow her office to paper up documentation to ensure they hadn’t breached this rule during the term of the listing?

In terms of the murders being linked to the sale, it does seem a huge coincidence. Perhaps the sale gave a sense of opportunity that would be lost once the Shermans had moved to a new, presumably higher security, home?

In order to gain access to the lockbox code, I think the killers would have to find and go through a trusted intermediary, to ensure no one connected them with the code (unless one of them was a legit real estate agent?). Even careless realtors, I think, would fess up about who they gave the code to, rather than protect the killers over a pretty minor violation of the rules. A realtor might also be frightened about their potential connection with ruthless murderers, and whether they might be targetted next.

Somewhere along the chain, there would have to be someone who could be trusted not to reveal who they had given the code to, and now, not to reveal it even for $10 million.

 

[MistyWaters]

In terms of the murders being linked to the sale, it does seem a huge coincidence. Perhaps the sale gave a sense of opportunity that would be lost once the Shermans had moved to a new, presumably higher security, home?

In order to gain access to the lockbox code, I think the killers would have to find and go through a trusted intermediary, to ensure no one connected them with the code (unless one of them was a legit real estate agent?). Even careless realtors, I think, would fess up about who they gave the code to, rather than protect the killers over a pretty minor violation of the rules. A realtor might also be frightened about their potential connection with ruthless murderers, and whether they might be targetted next.

Somewhere along the chain, there would have to be someone who could be trusted not to reveal who they had given the code to, and now, not to reveal it even for $10 million.

Greenspan had this to say:
WARMINGTON: Someone could have entered Shermans’ home, lawyer says
“Original photographs of the exterior of the scene (showed) a real-estate lock box which are notoriously easy to open. Open it, go to Canadian Tire and get the key made, return the key to the lock box and you have a key to the house.”

Real estate companies must buy these things in huge quantities from a major manufacturer and there’s various types found online. So even if it couldn’t just be opened, what’s to stop a perp from breaking into it, copying the key and putting the key back in another identical lock box?

I’m not certain of this but it appears the lock box code can be read from the inside of the devise. If so, then the perp would just have to enter that same code on the new lockbox and nobody would’ve noticed it wasn’t the original.

From reading various online articles about these older style manual lock boxes, yikes, I’d never agree to have one installed in a home I was living in. I certainly have to wonder if the Shermans were aware of the risks.

 

[ldlager]

Greenspan had this to say:
WARMINGTON: Someone could have entered Shermans’ home, lawyer says
“Original photographs of the exterior of the scene (showed) a real-estate lock box which are notoriously easy to open. Open it, go to Canadian Tire and get the key made, return the key to the lock box and you have a key to the house.”

Real estate companies must buy these things in huge quantities from a major manufacturer and there’s various types found online. So even if it couldn’t just be opened, what’s to stop a perp from breaking into it, copying the key and putting the key back in another identical lock box?

I’m not certain of this but it appears the lock box code can be read from the inside of the devise. If so, then the perp would just have to enter that same code on the new lockbox and nobody would’ve noticed it wasn’t the original.

From reading various online articles about these older style manual lock boxes, yikes, I’d never agree to have one installed in a home I was living in. I certainly have to wonder if the Shermans were aware of the risks.

My friend the realtor told me that the individual realtor sets each lock box code. She said that many realtors use the same code for all of their lock boxes at all their listings at the same time, and that many just use their year of birth as the code. If this was the case at the Sherman’s, the code would be easy to break- just get Gottliebs year of birth, or visit another one of her listings with an agent and watch the agent open the lockbox.
I wonder if the police have followed up on visitors to her other listings?
Finally, the lock box code for each listing is apparently recorded on a written sheet and kept at the realtors office. This could also be accessed by an unscrupulous realtor or employee at the realtors office.

 

[casesensitive]

Thanks dotr for posting yesterday's Joe Warmington article which included his interview with Insp. Hank Idsinga, the head of the TPS Homicide Unit.

To quote Insp.Hank Idsinga:

"The case has had just about everything — except suspects. I am hopeful we will get to the point where that changes."

I am actually quite amazed, and disappointed, that he admitted that they have no suspects fifteen months later. I know that some people will discount the statement outright, and say they are just trying to keep the killer(s) off balance. I hope that is their intent, but what if they are being honest?

Definitely, this was a complicated case for them, which I can truly appreciate, but their statement seems to infer that their investigation has turned cold. Reporter Kevin Donovan had reported that there is only one full time officer assigned to the case, which if true, validates that assumption.

My questions are: is TPS being coy, or has this case gone cold, or do they still believe that it was a murder/suicide? I'd be interested in what you all think? I hope the faithful lurkers will chime in.

SATURDAY SCRAWLER: Fence erected around murdered billionaires’ home

 

[ldlager]

Thanks dotr for posting yesterday's Joe Warmington article which included his interview with Insp. Hank Idsinga, the head of the TPS Homicide Unit.

To quote Insp.Hank Idsinga:

"The case has had just about everything — except suspects. I am hopeful we will get to the point where that changes."

I am actually quite amazed, and disappointed, that he admitted that they have no suspects fifteen months later. I know that some people will discount the statement outright, and say they are just trying to keep the killer(s) off balance. I hope that is their intent, but what if they are being honest?

Definitely, this was a complicated case for them, which I can truly appreciate, but their statement seems to infer that their investigation has turned cold. Reporter Kevin Donovan had reported that there is only one full time officer assigned to the case, which if true, validates that assumption.

My questions are: is TPS being coy, or has this case gone cold, or do they still believe that it was a murder/suicide? I'd be interested in what you all think? I hope the faithful lurkers will chime in.

SATURDAY SCRAWLER: Fence erected around murdered billi

Casesensitive, I don’t think Idsinga said “The case has had just about everything — except suspects”. I believe this is a Warrington comment- There are no quotation marks around this sentence in the article.

 

[ldlager]

Thanks dotr for posting yesterday's Joe Warmington article which included his interview with Insp. Hank Idsinga, the head of the TPS Homicide Unit.

To quote Insp.Hank Idsinga:

"The case has had just about everything — except suspects. I am hopeful we will get to the point where that changes."

I am actually quite amazed, and disappointed, that he admitted that they have no suspects fifteen months later. I know that some people will discount the statement outright, and say they are just trying to keep the killer(s) off balance. I hope that is their intent, but what if they are being honest?

Definitely, this was a complicated case for them, which I can truly appreciate, but their statement seems to infer that their investigation has turned cold. Reporter Kevin Donovan had reported that there is only one full time officer assigned to the case, which if true, validates that assumption.

My questions are: is TPS being coy, or has this case gone cold, or do they still believe that it was a murder/suicide? I'd be interested in what you all think? I hope the faithful lurkers will chime in.

SATURDAY SCRAWLER: Fence erected around murdered billionaires’ home

Casesensitive, I don’t think Idsinga said “The case has had just about everything — except suspects”. I believe this is a Warmington comment- There are no quotation marks around this sentence in the article.

 

[deugirtni]

Casesensitive, I don’t think Idsinga said “The case has had just about everything — except suspects”. I believe this is a Warmington comment- There are no quotation marks around this sentence in the article.

I think he must have said something similar, with same meaning, probably much longer and convoluted perhaps, but Warmington went on to immediately then quote Idsinga to say "“I am hopeful we will get to the point” where that changes, said Idsinga." jmo though.

 

[Satchie]

I think he must have said something similar, with same meaning, probably much longer and convoluted perhaps, but Warmington went on to immediately then quote Idsinga to say "“I am hopeful we will get to the point” where that changes, said Idsinga." jmo though.

If Idsinga shared the current insider details of the case with Warmington, both Greenspan and Donovan will be in fits.

What I read in that column is a belated and grudging explanation that it was not the official comments of Brandon Price, that there were "no suspects", that lead the Sun to proclaim that TPS believed it was murder-suicide. It was the off-base comment from his secret 'source'. Warmington even acknowledges, in a backhanded way, that it was far too early for police to be drawing conclusions one way or another.

To me, it reads like a sort of "mistakes were made (but not by me)".

The Sun's headline was picked up by other papers all over the world, and started the family off on their campaign against the police.

I imagine someone had to twist Warmington's arm to go back over the incident and print the exact words of Brandon Price and the exact comment, supposedly, of his "TPS source." It might be the Sun has been feeling heat from the family or TPS, even threat of a lawsuit.