CANADA Canada - Sonia Varaschin, 42, Orangeville, 29 Aug 2010 - #3

[2soccermom]

I'm always grateful for all efforts to keep Sonia's case in the spotlight -- in the hope that something new might offer a fresh look, put pressure on LE, or tweak someone's conscience. I think the video above crystallizes so much good info in one place (thanks for posting it FG!) but I'm not sure all the info there is accurate. We've debated some of the details here and on another site for Sonia. Not sure small details make big difference or not.... I gather the person who created the video gleaned her info from media sources; I wish those sources were more fully reliable. But for now, with LE still so silent, these sources are mostly all we have.
Most of all, as the holiday season slowly (i hope!) descends upon us, I so hope some progress can be made in Sona's case.

 

[Deleted member 102539]

ONTARIO COLD CASE: OPP could be searching for multiple suspects in unsolved Sonia Varaschin murder case
August 22, 2018
“It’s quite apparent from our scene examination that when the culprit left the scene, he was covered in a significant amount of blood. The blood would be expected to be on both footwear and clothing,” Det. Insp. Mark Pritchard said days following Sonia’s disappearance, adding it was not known if she’d been removed from her home dead or alive.
-.-
It was believed the killer was wearing a men’s size 10 or 11 Dakota or Wind River brand boot, sold exclusively at Mark’s Work Wearhouse.
-.-
“Somebody in Orangeville, somebody out there knows what happen to Sonia,” he said. “We have been working steady on this case and I don’t think we’re going backwards. I think we’re going ahead. We’re going forward.”

 

[Jos12]

This is my first post on WS, hello to all. I heard about this very tragic story of Sonia last night on an episode of Trace Evidence and couldn’t sleep all night. I find this case so baffling and sad. I’m also perplexed this case hasn’t solved in 8 years. I’m thinking of her parents and other family members, still in the dark.

What I find very strange is that the police didn’t release any details to the parents of the cause of death of Sonia. Why do you think that is?

I’m also, as you do, thinking a lot of why the killer took her out of the house. I was thinking, maybe she said to him early on ‘my boyfriend is coming home soon’ hoping he would leave. He believed her or not, but became worried she might have spoken the truth. And took her bleading but alive in a hurry outside.

 

[Oakland CA]

This is my first post on WS, hello to all. I heard about this very tragic story of Sonia last night on an episode of Trace Evidence and couldn’t sleep all night. I find this case so baffling and sad. I’m also perplexed this case hasn’t solved in 8 years. I’m thinking of her parents and other family members, still in the dark.

What I find very strange is that the police didn’t release any details to the parents of the cause of death of Sonia. Why do you think that is?

I’m also, as you do, thinking a lot of why the killer took her out of the house. I was thinking, maybe she said to him early on ‘my boyfriend is coming home soon’ hoping he would leave. He believed her or not, but became worried she might have spoken the truth. And took her bleading but alive in a hurry outside.

Welcome to websleuths Jos12

I think that's just the way Canadian LE/courts operate. Always keep any information that will help with a conviction, close to the vest.

I will say, I think Sonia was more than likely killed in the townhouse but I've always wondered about the relocation of the body as the reason for that has always puzzled me. After all, the perpetrator is running a greater risk by taking Sonia with him as opposed to just taking her car ...or just leaving with neither.

 

[Deleted member 102539]

O/T but very interesting, IMO
'Never a cold case': Robert Steven Wright, 39, of North Bay facing 1st-degree murder charge in Sweeney case - Sudbury.com

The DNA collected at the scene has never been matched to anyone in the available DNA databases. The case remains unsolved.
“The Renee Sweeney suspect DNA is already in the crime scene index,” said Greater Sudbury Police Det. Staff Sgt. Jordan Buchanan.
Now that the new DNA databank is in place, Buchanan said Greater Sudbury Police will also be loading in all of the DNA from its historical unsolved missing persons cases — there's 10 stretching back to 1974.
In 2017, the DNA collected at the scene of Sweeney's murder was used to produce a new composite sketch of what the suspect may look like.
Using DNA collected at the murder scene, the composite image was produced by Parabon NanoLabs, a DNA technology company in Virginia, with its Snapshot DNA Phenotyping Service.

North Bay man named suspect in 1998 Sudbury murder

On Jan. 27, 1998, a man attacked Sweeney at the former Adults Only video store on Paris Street. She suffered multiple stab wounds and succumbed to her injuries at the scene.
Sudbury police also said while there is intense public interest in the case and the arrest, officers can say little more at this time. “We are now at a stage where we must protect the integrity of the investigation and ensure that the court process is not jeopardized by what we release at this time.

 

[dotr]

O/T but very interesting, IMO
'Never a cold case': Robert Steven Wright, 39, of North Bay facing 1st-degree murder charge in Sweeney case - Sudbury.com

The DNA collected at the scene has never been matched to anyone in the available DNA databases. The case remains unsolved.
“The Renee Sweeney suspect DNA is already in the crime scene index,” said Greater Sudbury Police Det. Staff Sgt. Jordan Buchanan.
Now that the new DNA databank is in place, Buchanan said Greater Sudbury Police will also be loading in all of the DNA from its historical unsolved missing persons cases — there's 10 stretching back to 1974.
In 2017, the DNA collected at the scene of Sweeney's murder was used to produce a new composite sketch of what the suspect may look like.
Using DNA collected at the murder scene, the composite image was produced by Parabon NanoLabs, a DNA technology company in Virginia, with its Snapshot DNA Phenotyping Service.

Thinking along the same medical lines.. speculation

 

[Deleted member 102539]

O/T and even more interesting, IMO
Man accused in Sweeney murder a North Bay lab tech

The suspect in Renee Sweeney’s murder more than 20 years ago is a North Bay Regional Health Centre employee.

Sudbury detectives arrested Robert Steven Wright at work Tuesday and charged him with first-degree murder.

Wright is a 39-year-old emergency room lab technician. He is originally from Sudbury and attended Lockerby Composite School. He would have been 18 at the time of the slaying. Police released a graduation photo of Wright, taken when he was at Lockerby in the late 1990s.
-.-.-
CANADA - Canada - Renee Sweeney, 23, Sudbury, Ont, 27 Jan 1998

 

[dotr]

O/T and even more interesting, IMO
Man accused in Sweeney murder a North Bay lab tech

The suspect in Renee Sweeney’s murder more than 20 years ago is a North Bay Regional Health Centre employee.

Sudbury detectives arrested Robert Steven Wright at work Tuesday and charged him with first-degree murder.

Wright is a 39-year-old emergency room lab technician. He is originally from Sudbury and attended Lockerby Composite School. He would have been 18 at the time of the slaying. Police released a graduation photo of Wright, taken when he was at Lockerby in the late 1990s.
-.-.-
CANADA - Canada - Renee Sweeney, 23, Sudbury, Ont, 27 Jan 1998

Also posted on RS's thread.. fwiw..
Former girlfriend, classmates shed light on murder suspect's past
"A woman, who asked to remain anonymous, said she met Wright through a popular dating website – Plenty of Fish."

 

[dotr]

Cold-case expert says family DNA tests could widen the net to catch Sonia Varaschin’s killer | The Star
Jan 2 2019
It has been more than seven years since Sonia Varaschin was murdered, and forensics expert Rockne Harmon believes familial DNA searches could hold the key to cracking the case.

But, the process is not permitted in Canada.

 

[Deleted member 102539]

But, the process is not permitted in Canada.

It would be highest time to officially permit, IMO.

 

[dotr]

Bumping for Sonia and wondering if she had ever complained or commented that she received threatening calls or if she thought she was being followed?
Could her car have been followed the night of her murder, or possibly the perp hid in the back of her car?
Cannot recall offhand where SV's family lived, thinking either they lived in London, Ont. or SV once used to live there?
speculation, imo.

 

[Deleted member 102539]

Bumping for Sonia and wondering if she had ever complained or commented that she received threatening calls or if she thought she was being followed?
Could her car have been followed the night of her murder, or possibly the perp hid in the back of her car?
Cannot recall offhand where SV's family lived, thinking either they lived in London, Ont. or SV once used to live there?
speculation, imo.

bbm
Bolton

 

[Deleted member 102539]

When I hear about a "scandale" or something going on with Sick Kids Hospital, I'm always reminded of Sonia. But probably the murderer stems out of SV's closer vicinity and was more a personally (intimate?) connection.
The UK and the special citizen doesn't let me go either.

 

[Deleted member 102539]

Refreshing memories:
Sat., May 21, 2011
New details emerge as Sonia Varaschin murder probe set to enter ‘new phase’ | The Star

 

[Deleted member 102539]

Brother of murdered Orangeville nurse Sonia Varaschin thanks whoever made sister's memorial more accessible
“I do not know who put in a culvert at Sonia’s memorial site,” the post continued. “But thank you for doing this for us.”

The culvert was not there when a Banner reporter last visited the site shortly before the ninth anniversary of Sonia’s slaying in August of 2018.

 

[Kamille]

9 years later the investigation still goes on and the detectives refuse to classify this as a cold case. This is a good article explaining what they have or may look into with regards to the DNA collected.

‘Who left the DNA?’ Sonia Varaschin murder investigators exploring ‘new science’ to find Orangeville nurse’s killer

 

[2soccermom]

It's so hard to mark this time of year with no real new information. I know LE wants to solve this case and have worked hard to do so; I'm not blaming anyone for why there is no justice for Sonia. I also understand WHY they keep certain details secret -- so they don't get a false confession, or so if the perp slips in revealing a detail, that helps for evidence. But surely at SOME point the potential benefits of info-sharing could outweigh its losses? What if there was something in the details (-- about manner of death, including re: murder weapon, for example) that might actually be useful for mobilizing knowledge outside of LE's range? LE keeps appealing to "the public" for information, and we keep being told "the public" likely holds the key to solving the case. What if "the public" doesn't know it's holding on to a critical piece of info? What if the perp said something to a friend, family member or co-worker, or was in possession of something, that only makes sense in relation to the specific details? We can't help if we don't know.
Maybe there isn't anything in the specifics that would trigger a light for someone who might not even know they know something. But what if there was?
At what point does it become ok to let "the public" in on info crucial to the case?

I know I'm not asking any original questions here. Others have pondered this long before. Sadly.

 

[dotr]

"Aug 29, 2019
The death of Sonia Varaschin nine years ago remains one of the OPP’s biggest unsolved murders. Mark McAllister speaks to the mother of the Orangeville nurse, and the lead investigator on the case about the years-long search for the killer."

 

[dotr]

rbbm.
'We're not going to rest': Investigators vow to find Sonia Varaschin's killer
August 30, 2019 7:01PM EDT
"This is not a cold case. We have been actively investigating this case since the 30th of August, 2010. It's not a cold case." Det. Insp. Shawn Glassford makes it very clear he is determined to find the person who killed Sonia Varaschin nine years ago.

The 42-year-old Orangeville woman was reported missing on Aug. 30, 2010, when she failed to show up for work.

That same day, police located her blood-stained car in an alley behind Orangeville town hall. They went to her townhome on Spring Street to investigate and described finding a horrific crime scene.

Photos



"I believe Sonia was targeted. Whether she knew who the killer was or not, I don't know that. But I do know that she was targeted," Glassford says.

Just days after her disappearance, Sonia's body was discovered in a ditch along Beech Grove Sideroad in Caledon, some 13 kilometres from her home.

Investigators say she was wrapped in blood-soaked bed sheets and dragged from her home.

Police recovered DNA evidence believed to belong to the killer, but so far there has been no match. Even so, Glassford says it's only a matter of time before they find the person responsible. "[It's a] feeling I have. The investigators we have are very determined, very stubborn. I feel confident."

 

[jessica-]

rbbm.
'We're not going to rest': Investigators vow to find Sonia Varaschin's killer
August 30, 2019 7:01PM EDT
"This is not a cold case. We have been actively investigating this case since the 30th of August, 2010. It's not a cold case." Det. Insp. Shawn Glassford makes it very clear he is determined to find the person who killed Sonia Varaschin nine years ago.

The 42-year-old Orangeville woman was reported missing on Aug. 30, 2010, when she failed to show up for work.

That same day, police located her blood-stained car in an alley behind Orangeville town hall. They went to her townhome on Spring Street to investigate and described finding a horrific crime scene.

Photos



"I believe Sonia was targeted. Whether she knew who the killer was or not, I don't know that. But I do know that she was targeted," Glassford says.

Just days after her disappearance, Sonia's body was discovered in a ditch along Beech Grove Sideroad in Caledon, some 13 kilometres from her home.

Investigators say she was wrapped in blood-soaked bed sheets and dragged from her home.

Police recovered DNA evidence believed to belong to the killer, but so far there has been no match. Even so, Glassford says it's only a matter of time before they find the person responsible. "[It's a] feeling I have. The investigators we have are very determined, very stubborn. I feel confident."

Wonder if they could submit DNA to one of those genetic DNA kits? Alot of cases are being solved, so it's a great tool to use.