Arrest made in violent sexual assault cold cases in Richmond Hill, Mississauga (VIDEO)

An arrest has been made in relation to violent sexual assaults in Richmond Hill in November 2014 and in Mississauga in September 2013, York Regional Police said. 

In a 2020 video about the case York Regional Police shared details of the case — considered a cold case— and their investigation.

On Thursday, Nov. 13, 2014, a young female got off a bus at the stop at Yonge Street and Bernard Avenue after midnight. She began walking on Canyon Hill Avenue and was about 55 feet away from Yonge when she was approached by a male suspect wearing a mask and armed with a knife, police said.

He dragged the victim into a field, about 100 feet away from the road, and police said he "viciously and violently assaulted her."

Through their investigation, York police determined the case was linked to another sexual assault in Peel Region the year before. 

On Friday, Sept. 27, 2013, a woman in her 40s was attacked after she got off a bus in the area of South Service Road and Crestview Avenue in Mississauga. She was approached by a male suspect who pulled out a weapon and dragged her across a grassy area and sexually assaulted her, police said. 

Investigators from both York and Peel used the Violent Crime Linkage Analysis System (ViCLAS) to determine these incidents were related. Both police services formed a task force dedicated to these cases and were confident in saying it was the same offender in both assaults. 

York Regional Police said they believed the attacker was of East Asian descent and was active in the Fort Credit, South Mississauga area and also in Richmond Hill around 2013 and 2014. 

They also said they believed there could be more victims based on the "the severity and the escalation between the Peel incident to the York incident." They reminded the public that there is no statute of limitations for sexual offences and a report can be made at any time. 

Now, more than eight years later, YRP is announcing that an arrest has been made in relation to the assaults. A news conference will be held at police headquarters in Aurora Wednesday, March 16 to provide an update on these cases.