Maple Leaf Gardens abuser Gordon Stuckless has died

Gordon Stuckless, the man at the centre of the Maple Leaf Gardens sexual abuse scandal, has died.

Ari Goldkind, Stuckless’s lawyer, confirmed to Global News on Thursday that Stuckless died in Hamilton of a brain hemorrhage.

Stuckless, who was in his early 70s, was released from prison in mid-January under certain conditions, including living in a halfway house in Hamilton.

Stuckless faced close to 10 years behind bars for sexually abusing young boys over three decades during his positions as an assistant teacher and volunteer coach at the Toronto arena.

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In 2019, the Ontario Superior Court increased his sentence after the original sentence was found inadequate, given the “staggering” magnitude of his crimes.

2:19 “I hope he rots”: victims of Gordon Stuckless react to sentence

Stuckless was given six-and-a-half years behind bars in 2016 — six years after credit for his time on house arrest — for sexually abusing 18 boys over three decades.

He pleaded guilty two years earlier to 100 charges and was later found guilty of two more offences in connection with two of the boys.

— With files by The Canadian Press, Global News reporter Alanna Rizza