Police identify human remains of Oshawa woman 14 years after she went missing

Durham Regional Police say they have identified human remains belonging to a young woman who disappeared over a decade ago, and that the man convicted in her death led investigators to where he buried her.

Police said on Wednesday the remains are of 19-year-old Kandis Fitzpatrick, who went missing in March 2008 in Oshawa.

In 2021, police received a tip that human remains were buried underground in a large greenspace area in northern Oshawa.

“I can confirm today that the remains found last November are those of Kandis Fitzpatrick,” Det. Sgt. Doris Carriere told reporters.

In May 2021, an Oshawa resident, Adam Strong was convicted of Fitzpatrick’s death and also for the death 18-year-old Rori Hache — another young woman Strong had killed after she disappeared in August 2017.

The 48-year-old offender is serving a concurrent sentence of life in prison with no chance of parole for 25 years for the first-degree murder of Hache and 18 years in prison for the manslaughter of Fitzpatrick.

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Fitzpatrick’s body was never found for years until police made the announcement of her discovery linked to this historical case on Wednesday.

Carriere said Strong had disclosed information related to Fitzpatrick to a staff member while he was in prison. The staff member then contacted police and several interviews with Strong followed, Carriere said.

He also said through judicial authorization and while under custody, Strong accompanied investigators to the location and “pointed to a general area where he had believed he had buried the remains back in 2008.”

“On Nov. 4 we conducted an operation which led us to a small clearing by the tree line behind Secreto Drive in Oshawa,” Carriere said, adding the human remains were then first located four days later on Nov. 8.

“Our goal in this recovery was to be able to provide some closure to Kandis’ family and all that were affected by his crime,” Carriere said.

Strong was arrested at his downtown apartment in Oshawa in 2017, and linked at the time with the disappearance of the other teenager, Rori Hache.

His arrest came late in 2017 after plumbers working on the house where Strong lived found a flesh-like substance in the pipes.

Hache’s torso was found in Lake Ontario about a month after she vanished.

However, for Fitzpatrick, investigators were only able to connect Strong with her murder after her DNA was recovered during an exhaustive forensic search of Strong’s basement apartment, including on a hunting knife.

But without hard evidence at the time, such as Fitzpatrick’s body, he was only sentenced to manslaughter for her death.

Strong will not be eligible for parole until Dec. 29, 2042, 25 years after he was arrested at his downtown Oshawa apartment.

Carriere told reporters that because the discovery of Fitzpatrick’s remains were found after he was convicted, they cannot upgrade charges post conviction and no additional charges will be laid.

Carriere also said Strong received no added privilege or financial compensation or anything in return for providing the information that led to the discovery of Fitzpatrick’s remains.

“There was some negotiation. None of it was entertained by the police,” Carriere said, adding that a moral and ethical “line in the sand” was drawn.

2:10 Police discover remains of Oshawa woman who went missing 14 years ago

Family of Kandis and Rori speak out following human remains discovery

Meanwhile, at the police press conference on Wednesday, Hache’s mother Shanan Dionne told Global News through tears “I am feeling some sense of peace.”

“I am shocked I won’t lie,” Dionne continued. “What he did was so bad that there’s no getting away from what he’s done to Rori and Kandis.”

Dionne said she is feeling “warm and fuzzy” for Bill Fitzpatrick, Kandis’ father, and said “now he can go home and rest assured that everyone’s accounted for in his family.”

Bill Fitzpatrick spoke exclusively to Global News outside of his home. He said he initially didn’t think the remains were of his daughter Kandis because he thought she was in the lake like Hache’s body was.

“I never thought I’d see her remains. Ever,” Bill said.

“I drove up to there and I literally sat outside of the site for a couple hours,” Bill said referring to the greenspace area where Strong told investigators he had buried Kandis.

Bill said he is satisfied and happy that her remains were found and brought home but that the discovery has taken him a few steps back as he feels he is reliving the pain all over again.

“It’s a good day but it’s also a step back and brings back all the thoughts again,” Bill said.

He said he plans on getting Kandis cremated and having a celebration of life for her. He also said he plans on putting some of her ashes in lockets for his other three children.

During the sentencing hearing in 2021, Justice Joseph Di Luca called Strong “a dangerous predator” who not only destroyed two vulnerable lives, but destroyed those closest to them.

“You may never be capable of feeling the damage you have caused. You will never be seen in public again. In time you will be forgotten perhaps not by the families of the victims … you will neither be famous or infamous,” Di Luca told Strong as he sat in the prisoner’s box breathing heavily behind a mask.

The judge said Strong has shown no remorse and is unlikely to be rehabilitated.

— With files from The Canadian Press

2:33 Police ID remains of missing Oshawa woman, her convicted killer led police to her body

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