A man arrested after the remains of a pregnant teenager were found in the basement of an Oshawa home now faces two charges of first-degree murder in connection with her death and the death of a second teenager.
Remains were discovered at the home on McMillan Drive, near Bond and Centre Streets, on December 2017, by construction worker.
On Jan. 5 2018, police confirmed that the remains belonged to 18-year-old Rori Hache, who was reported missing by her family in August 2017.
Hache was last seen on surveillance footage at Lakeridge Health Oshawa on Aug. 30.
Several weeks after Hache was reported missing, a fisherman found her torso floating in the Oshawa Harbour.
Investigators searching the property where Hache’s remains were found discovered a second DNA profile at the home.
In July, police said they believed the DNA belonged to Kandis Fitzpatrick, who was last seen by her family in 2008. Fitzpatrick was also 18 years old when she went missing.
A suspect police have identified as Oshawa-resident Adam Jeffrey Strong, 45, was arrested in connection with the discovery of Hache’s remains. Police said they believed Strong was a tenant at the home where the remains were found.
Strong was charged at that time with indecent interference with a dead body. He now faces two counts of first-degree murder in connection with the deaths of both Hache and Fitzpatrick. As a result, the initial charge has been dropped.
Strong appeared in court via video-link earlier in the day. He remains in custody on the new charges.
Hache’s mother spoke with reporters outside the courthouse after the charges were laid.
“It’s the greatest day I have had in the last 17 months,” Shanan Dionne. “I can finally go home and hang a picture of my daughter up now and look her in her face and know that justice is actually starting to prevail for her.”
“The girls, they definitely deserve their day in court.”
The charges have not been proven in court.
