This is when a killer really starts to sweat.
“Nobody can outsmart three crime scenes,” explains Mark Mendelson, a former detective with the Toronto Police homicide squad.
He should know. During his 14 years on the squad, he investigated more than 100 murders.
While Sonia Varaschin’s cold-blooded slayer may be at large — if it indeed was her body discovered near Orangeville Sunday — the options are narrowing for the person who killed the 42-year-old nurse.
“The killer’s smartest move would be to contact a lawyer and have them contact the OPP,” said Mendelson, now of Mark Mendelson Consulting Inc.
The idea of this killer getting away with it was already unlikely. The rope may now be tightening.
“Assuming this was her, what police are now faced with are three crime scenes — the home, the car and the location of the body,” said Mendelson, who added his heart goes out to the family.
With today’s “forensic technology,” each crime scene, while gruesome, will be of “great benefit” in trying to solve a murder.
“It is going to take time to process them but it also increases the odds of collecting evidence,” said Mendelson.
No matter how hard a killer tries, covering tracks is next to impossible.
“People who kill can do some pretty strange things. They can act impulsively,” said Mendelson. “They can be scared and nervous and trying to avoid detection.”
But they can’t think of everything.
“The OPP are good investigators,” said Mendelson. “The are seasoned and will go where the evidence takes them.”
The autopsy, as well as other forensics, will be of great assistance — as will the killer’s electronic shadow.
“How many times a day are we on camera?” asks Mendelson. “You can be sure they have already been checking cell phone records, credit cards, debit transactions, looking at video and ATM machines, gas stations, parking lots and tire tracks. This is laborious work, but it will get done.”
Each case is different but lessons are learned from previous ones, as well.
“Police will keep an open mind but they also know most times people are killed by people they know,” said Mendelson. “They will consider everything but generally an investigation starts at home and works its way out — ruling people out through interviews. Eventually the scope will narrow.”
For detectives, speculation in media are secondary considerations as we learned in the 2005 Alicia Ross murder case where reporters focused incorrectly on her boyfriend when in the end a neighbour was convicted.
The only thing that matters, said Mendelson, is the actual evidence. He said police are not obliged to let on what they know or what tact they are taking. They concentrate on the end game and are thinking court.
“One of the keys to a homicide investigation is to try to keep information you have pristine,” said Mendelson. “They don’t want to paint a version of it to affect potential interviews and this is why police sometimes play their cards close to their chest.”
But make no mistake, they are all over this and a killer should not be sleeping well.
“I am sure he or she will be following the news diligently,” said Mendelson “The killer will be quite nervous and waiting for the door to knock.”
With three crime scenes teaming with forensic evidence, Mendelson said, it’s only a matter of time before that knock comes.
joe.warmington@sunmedia.ca
