In wake of Magnotta case, police forces dust off unsolved files - The Globe and Mail

Warning: This story contains graphic detailsInvestigators from across Europe and North America are scouring unsolvedmurder cases looking for potential links to Luka Rocco Magnotta.More Related to this StoryPublic editor: Globe’s coverage of Montreal slaying was justifiedMagnotta could be back in Canada in a month‘You got me,’ Magnotta tells police in Berlin café AP VideovideoRaw video: Body parts suspect arrested in BerlinRocco Luka Magnotta is shown in a photo from the website www.luka-magnotta.com. Mr. Magnotta is wanted in the shocking case of a dismembered body whose parts were mailed to different places including the headquarters of the Conservative Party of Canada. THE CANADIAN PRESSvideoVideo: Police say web helped in Magnotta's capture CP VideovideoVideo: Berlin police discuss Magnotta's arrestWhile stressing the checks are normal at this stage, Montreal police say Mr.Magnotta’s frequent travels and the methodical killing of university student LinJun – he was bound, stabbed, dismembered, his corpse sexually defiled and partlyeaten, much of it captured on video – have police in dozens of jurisdictionslooking for patterns.Internet sleuths and some media have already started to draw similaritiesbetween local Remy hair unsolved homicides and Mr. Lin’s death, but Montreal investigatorssay no firm evidence has caused any case to stand out yet. Analysts are lookingat assaults and sex crimes as well as murder, according to Montreal policeCommander Denis Mainville.“In Montreal alone, we have probably 100 files going back a number of yearsthat we’ll look at,” said Cdr. Mainville, the head investigator of the Montrealpolice major crimes unit who was conducting rare interviews in the middle of thecase.He offered a lengthy briefing on the investigation, revealing a number of newdetails.Montreal police have asked their Edmonton counterparts to look at Weaving hair theAlberta-based operator of a ghoulish website that streams video of the attack onMr. Lin. Investigators in Montreal believe the site may be breaking obscenitylaws.“We’ve asked the operator repeatedly to take it down, and he’s refused,” saidpolice Commander Ian Lafrenière.Edmonton police have only launched an internal review of the video on theBest Gore website, said police spokeswoman Patrycia Thenu. She declined toexplain the parameters of the internal review or whether it could lead tocharges.The site is owned by Edmonton-area photographer Mark Marek. In statementse-mailed to the media, Mr. Marek defended his website, saying he has a right todisplay “real life events,” including the video that police say depicts Mr.Lin’s killing.Montreal officers said Mr. Lin was reported missing last week by a “closefriend,” who then identified him by the grisly video during his own Internetsearch for clues.“He had been looking for his friend for four days and in his search onlinecame across this,” police Cdr. Lafrenière said in an interview. “It’s Hair weaving hard toimagine.”Mr. Lin’s family in China is obtaining passports, visas and plane tickets totravel to Montreal, said Xu Zheng, consul at the city’s Consulate General ofChina. The family, which includes Mr. Lin’s parents, could arrive as early asthis week. “The family wants to come as soon as possible,” he said.Cdr. Mainville disputed the popular theory that Mr. Magnotta was looking toget caught as he fled Montreal to Paris and then Berlin. He reportedly used hiscellphone, visited Internet cafés and bars, checked in with old friends, andapproached strangers to party while on the lam in France and Germany.“On the contrary, he was fairly prudent, changing his appearance, wearingwigs, glasses, frequently changing clothes,” Cdr. Mainville said. “Luckily, healso made mistakes.”Mr. Magnotta’s online presence was key to his arrest. Hundreds of photoshelped people spot him and Mr. Magnotta controlled 70 Facebook pages,investigators say. He was checking out websites about his flight when a workerat an Internet café in Berlin recognized him.“I have trouble following one Facebook page, he had 70,” Cdr. Lafrenièresaid. “He was clearly out to glorify himself, and that certainly helped bringhim down.”With reports from Renata D'Aliesio in Toronto and IngridPeritz in Montreal.More Related to this Story‘They’ve taken a monster off the street’Scenes from Luka Magnotta's arrest in Berlin