Laura Babcock: Dellen Millard & Mark Smich charged w/Murder in the First Degree #1

[Sillybilly]

I guess the housing crunch must be awful in Toronto these days if the up and comers are relocating to be next door to the city's largest transit yard car house. Maybe it's the MacDonalds on the street corner that is the attraction? Just kiddin'.

<rsbm>

Naw ... the real up and comers relocate to Distillery Lane with all the train tracks and the Gardiner Expressway lulling them to sleep ... as seen here

 

[matou]

<rsbm>

Naw ... the real up and comers relocate to Distillery Lane with all the train tracks and the Gardiner Expressway lulling them to sleep ... as seen here

I doubt Millard was doing much sleeping while visiting one of his condos in the Distillery though.

 

[Variant]

I guess the housing crunch must be awful in Toronto these days if the up and comers are relocating to be next door to the city's largest transit yard car house. Maybe it's the MacDonalds on the street corner that is the attraction? Just kiddin'.

(BTW, and only because it's been mentioned before, it's gratifying in a somewhat spooky kind of way to again note the interest in building a profile on some posters based on earlier references saved from their comments. I can't fully understand what is to be gained by such an exercise but then again, as they say, different strokes for different folks, et al. MOO. IMHO. etc. )

No "profile building" other than my memory. The trendiness is up the street; for example Daniel Lanois built his studio nearby. Maybe he plans to incorporate streetcar noise into his new recordings.

 

[Carli]

No "profile building" other than my memory. The trendiness is up the street; for example Daniel Lanois built his studio nearby. Maybe he plans to incorporate streetcar noise into his new recordings.

Good to know, thanks. :sorry:

 

[Alethea Dice]

No "profile building" other than my memory. The trendiness is up the street; for example Daniel Lanois built his studio nearby. Maybe he plans to incorporate streetcar noise into his new recordings.

As he says, "There's something about the rumbling of street cars that keeps you honest". The studio is a fair jog up the street, and actually a few blocks outside of what seems to be known as Parkdale. Still not too sure I'd call it trendy, but it looks to be a step in the right direction. JMO

 

[Variant]

As he says, "There's something about the rumbling of street cars that keeps you honest". The studio is a fair jog up the street, and actually a few blocks outside of what seems to be known as Parkdale. Still not too sure I'd call it trendy, but it looks to be a step in the right direction. JMO

The whole block from Queen to Bloor and Parkside to Landsdowne, which includes both the hotel and the studio, was renamed "Roncesvalles" by the city (and realtors) several years ago presumably to disassociate from Parkdale connotation.

My professional friends who have moved into "Roncy" to raise their families might disagree with your low trend rating, as does this New York Times article : )

http://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2011/10/09/travel/20111009-surfacing.html?_r=0

 

[cansleuther]

SL chose the hotel in that area because it was pet-friendly and LB still had her dog with her.

The last time Mr. Lerner saw Ms. Babcock was when he took her out for dinner at the Eaton Centre food court on June 26. He had put her up in a hotel near Queen and Roncesvalles, chosen because it was pet-friendly, and they talked about her apartment search.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/toronto-police-ask-for-help-with-babcocks-disappearance/article12332413/

Also, in August 2012, when people were offering to search for LB on the 'Help Us Find Laura' FB page, SL said that LB "has no ties" to the Roncesvalles area and it would be unlikely that anyone would spot her there.

 

[Sillybilly]

As at 9:00 pm June 26, LB and her doggy both had a roof over their heads, yet 4 days later she dropped the dog and the money off at her parents. If SL paid for her hotel room on June 26, it would seem LB didn't have the money to do so. How was that shoebox of money acquired between June 26 and June 30 when dog and shoebox were dropped off?

Perhaps SL couldn't afford to keep her at the hotel longer. We don't know how much money was in the shoebox, but why leave the money with her parents. Why not stay at the hotel until the money was gone? Not like she dropped the dog and had no use for the money because she was contemplating suicide, because July 2 she was asking her friend NM for a place to stay (which does give credence to DM's claim that she was also asking him).

What's up with money in shoeboxes? MJW movie "Red Shoes", pic of red shoes and money in shoebox, LB and money in a shoebox. Kind of a weird coinkydink.

 

[Carli]

As at 9:00 pm June 26, LB and her doggy both had a roof over their heads, yet 4 days later she dropped the dog and the money off at her parents. If SL paid for her hotel room on June 26, it would seem LB didn't have the money to do so. How was that shoebox of money acquired between June 26 and June 30 when dog and shoebox were dropped off?

Perhaps SL couldn't afford to keep her at the hotel longer. We don't know how much money was in the shoebox, but why leave the money with her parents. Not like she dropped the dog and money and committed suicide, because July 2 she was asking her friend NM for a place to stay (which does give credence to DM's claim).

What's up with money in shoeboxes? MJW movie "Red Shoes", pic of red shoes and money in shoebox, LB and money in a shoebox. Kind of a weird coinkydink.

Such well put points, imo, SB, It's a wee bit awkward to drill down into the troubled world of this sweet, troubled and talented girl (by all accounts) but it also seems that her family were at wits end - I'm thinking of that "tough love" reference and probably there's no person less able to positively respond to that (forgive me) idiotic idea than someone like LB. I'm always accusing posters of transference of their own biases into the processes of others in this tragic enterprise but were I to be allowed the same license, I'd say something like "Here you go parents. Always on my back about what I'm doing with my life? How I'm going to support myself? Who I'm going to marry? et al?. Well, here, take my damn money. All of it. And take my beloved dog, too. And every day you have to care for him with my money, think of me, because you will never, ever see me again." (Or something equally dramatic. Not to forget, this dear lost girl had studied theatre.)

Or something like that.

Or maybe nothing like that.

Whatever the circumstances may have been, it seems clear that she had become extremely vulnerable. It seems that there were many men who had, one way or another, come into her life who were willing to exploit that vulnerabilty.

Were MS and DM among them? Well, I guess we'll learn more about that eventually. For the time being, (and it slays me to say it because we've locked horns on practically everything else in these cases) I'm squarely with ABro on that matter. MOO. IMHO.

 

[Carli]

<rsbm>

Naw ... the real up and comers relocate to Distillery Lane with all the train tracks and the Gardiner Expressway lulling them to sleep ... as seen here

Holy cow. OT but that seems horrific to me. You people in Toronto really need to move to Vancouver ASAP. I don't think your environment is healthy anymore. MOO. IMHO. LOL,

 

[MsSherlock]

Just wondering if anyone has any links indicating MS's relationship with LB. Where they friends? Did they even know each other? Acquaintances? Just curious. MOO

 

[matou]

Good question MsS. I haven't seen any link between them. MS was living with DM so maybe LB was showing up there?

 

[MsSherlock]

Good question MsS. I haven't seen any link between them. MS was living with DM so maybe LB was showing up there?

Thanks Matou. At the time of TB's murder, MS was living with his mom, yet 6 months earlier, he was in WM's basement. SL has never mentioned anything about MS. Wonder when he started to call Maple Gate home- was it a couple weeks? Months? MOO

 

[Kamille]

Did MS have a driver's license?

 

[swedie]

Did MS have a driver's license?

I don't know if it's ever been clarified. Did he have a job, or money to buy and maintain a car? Good questions. MOO.

He was convicted of drug possession in 2005 and 2006, for failing to comply twice in 2006 and impaired driving in 2009.

He is also facing a charge of mischief for allegedly spray-painting a highway overpass.

http://globalnews.ca/news/585372/who-is-mark-smich/

 

[Kamille]

I don't know if it's ever been clarified. Did he have a job, or money to buy and maintain a car? Good questions. MOO.

He was convicted of drug possession in 2005 and 2006, for failing to comply twice in 2006 and impaired driving in 2009.

He is also facing a charge of mischief for allegedly spray-painting a highway overpass.

http://globalnews.ca/news/585372/who-is-mark-smich/

Well without a drivers license he wouldn't have been able to get insurance which he would need to be able to register a vehicle. And with a prior DUI at his age, he may have found it extremely difficult to even find an insurance company to cover him for anything less than a ridiculously high premium, especially on a Ram 3500 pick up, if they'd even cover him at all. Wouldn't DM know a little of his driving history and wonder how this was going to be possible? And of course if there was no job, how did DM expect MS was going to pay for this truck if he thought he was just going along on a test drive with a friend?

So are we to believe he may have wanted to steal this truck and drive it around unregistered? Because let's face it, he definitely couldn't register a stolen vehicle.,When DM has the history of chopped vehicles in his hangars?

And then there's the burner phone.....

MOO

 

[Juballee]

Well without a drivers license he wouldn't have been able to get insurance which he would need to be able to register a vehicle. And with a prior DUI at his age, he may have found it extremely difficult to even find an insurance company to cover him for anything less than a ridiculously high premium, especially on a Ram 3500 pick up, if they'd even cover him at all. Wouldn't DM know a little of his driving history and wonder how this was going to be possible? And of course if there was no job, how did DM expect MS was going to pay for this truck if he thought he was just going along on a test drive with a friend?

So are we to believe he may have wanted to steal this truck and drive it around unregistered? Because let's face it, he definitely couldn't register a stolen vehicle.,When DM has the history of chopped vehicles in his hangars?

And then there's the burner phone.....

MOO

In my mind, someone who is willing to murder someone for a vehicle has little worry about the registration and insurance issues, or having a proper licence or prior DUI's.

In my opinion, an accusation without any charges or convictions is not a history nor indicative of a pattern, so it is inaccurate to say that DM has a history of chopped vehicles.

How long ago was it that the 'chop shop' story emerged? It's been almost 2 years, if I recall correctly. Are they still trying to find enough evidence that it was a chop shop to charge him with that crime, or did they give up on that idea, I wonder?

When they had additional charges to lay against MS, they didn't wait 2 years, or until the trial, so I have to assume that they would have also laid additional charges against DM at the same time if they really felt they had a case for a chop shop. He wasn't even charged for the Harley, and that one we know was in his hanger. LE know who the trailer was registered to, if it was registered to DM I feel certain that they would have charged him with it by now. Wouldn't Marty's insurance company insist on charges against the accused thief, if the police had evidence supporting charges?

 

[SnooperDuper]

In my mind, someone who is willing to murder someone for a vehicle has little worry about the registration and insurance issues, or having a proper licence or prior DUI's.

In my opinion, an accusation without any charges or convictions is not a history nor indicative of a pattern, so it is inaccurate to say that DM has a history of chopped vehicles.

How long ago was it that the 'chop shop' story emerged? It's been almost 2 years, if I recall correctly. Are they still trying to find enough evidence that it was a chop shop to charge him with that crime, or did they give up on that idea, I wonder?

When they had additional charges to lay against MS, they didn't wait 2 years, or until the trial, so I have to assume that they would have also laid additional charges against DM at the same time if they really felt they had a case for a chop shop. He wasn't even charged for the Harley, and that one we know was in his hanger. LE know who the trailer was registered to, if it was registered to DM I feel certain that they would have charged him with it by now. Wouldn't Marty's insurance company insist on charges against the accused thief, if the police had evidence supporting charges?

MM did not have insurance on the Harley.

I think simply the 3 murders DM committed take precedence over the multiple thefts he committed.

 

[Kamille]

In my mind, someone who is willing to murder someone for a vehicle has little worry about the registration and insurance issues, or having a proper licence or prior DUI's.

Nor would someone who is willing to murder someone for a vehicle worry about getting caught with a stolen vehicle in their possession. Which it appears DM has on at least two occasions now.

In my opinion, an accusation without any charges or convictions is not a history nor indicative of a pattern, so it is inaccurate to say that DM has a history of chopped vehicles.

I know we can't link facebook accounts of his friends but let's face it we've all seen the pics. Both hangers were an assortment of car parts, hoists, car engines and chopped vehicles. Were they all stolen? No. Were some? Maybe. But a lot of them were chopped.

How long ago was it that the 'chop shop' story emerged? It's been almost 2 years, if I recall correctly. Are they still trying to find enough evidence that it was a chop shop to charge him with that crime, or did they give up on that idea, I wonder?

This task force has much bigger things to busy themselves with than tracking down ownership on vehicles and parts that likely had VIN numbers wiped out if stolen. It was done to the bike, stands to reason it was done to the cars. So tracing any of them down as stolen is probably next to impossible. Nor is it worth the trouble. They've got their hands full with 3 murders to gather evidence for and prosecute. And proving who stole vehicles at this point is next to impossible. If we've possibly got finger pointing for a murder, imagine how easy it would be for vehicle theft that likely goes back years. How do you even start to investigate that? Even without the murders I doubt he would have been charged with anything in regards to what was found in the hanger and he knew it. Just not worth the trouble to sort out. Insurance companies have already dealt with victim loss if there is any.

When they had additional charges to lay against MS, they didn't wait 2 years, or until the trial, so I have to assume that they would have also laid additional charges against DM at the same time if they really felt they had a case for a chop shop. He wasn't even charged for the Harley, and that one we know was in his hanger. LE know who the trailer was registered to, if it was registered to DM I feel certain that they would have charged him with it by now. Wouldn't Marty's insurance company insist on charges against the accused thief, if the police had evidence supporting charges?

Some answers above in bold....

Marty's insurance company would have required a police report from Marty. That is all. DM could easily lie as to how he acquired the trailer so what's the point? It's only us sleuthers who are at all interested in who was in the black truck that stole Marty's bike and trailer. As I said LE have much bigger fish to fry. DM wasn't running a full fledged chop shop IMO. But I don't think it was out of the realm of possibility to steal vehicles to get parts for others. IMO it was a hobby, not a business. So when I use the term "chopped vehicles" I'm referring more to the pieces of various vehicles of unknown origin all over both hangers that we've seen the pics of and that was reported to be the situation inside the hanger when LE descended on it after Tim's truck was found in MB's driveway inside DM's trailer.

MOO

 

[Kamille]

MM did not have insurance in the Harley.

I think simply the 3 murders DM committed take precedence over the multiple thefts he committed.

How do we know MM did not have insurance? Not that it really matters in the grand scheme of things. Just wondering. :waitasec: