The terrible saga of Vancouver’s missing women began back in 1971, when women started disappearing from the city’s downtown eastside. Rumours floated for years before Vancouver police started reviewing the files of dozens of missing women in September 1998.
In July of the following year, the VPD and the BC Attorney General published a poster featuring dozens of the missing women and offered a $100,000 reward for information leading to an arrest and conviction.
In February of 2002, RCMP and members of the missing women task force raided a suburban Vancouver pig farm on a firearms warrant and scoured the property for clues. Robert "Willy" Pickton was charged with killing Sereena Abotsway and Mona Wilson. Five more murder charges were added in the spring. In June, police began digging for DNA remains on the property with the help of archaeologists. In the fall, eight more charges were filed.
Court proceedings got underway with a preliminary hearing in January 2003. In July, Pickton stood trial on 15 murder counts in what was described as the biggest serial murder case in Canadian history.
In the meantime, excavations at Pickton’s farm continued and in the spring of 2005, Pickton was charged with 12 more murders. Pre-trial hearings began in June under a publication ban and a heavy worldwide media presence.
In August of the following year, the Crown decided to try only six counts first, postponing the remaining 20 counts for a later trial. Gruesome details followed about Pickton allegedly killing the women and butchering their remains.
The prosecution opened its case against Pickton in January 2007. The first six charges are for the murders of Marnie Frey, Georgina Papin, Brenda Wolfe, Andrea Joesbury, Mona Wilson and Sereena Abotsway.
The crown called 98 witnesses over the next seven months, finally resting their case in October. The defence attempted to paint Pickton as borderline mentally-challenged, claiming he didn’t understand what he was saying when he allegedly confessed to murdering women.
The defence rested its case in October and final arguments began in November.
On December 9, 2007, Robert Pickton was convicted of six counts of second-degree murder and handed a life sentence. He was also charged with 20 more murders, but the prosecution later decides it’s not worth the cost to pursue another trial.
On June 25th, 2009, Pickton’s conviction was upheld by the BC Appeals court.
In all, officials estimate the police investigation and trial cost $116 million.
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