Wednesday, March 7, 2012

Police conclude search after human remains found

The police tape has been taken down and the commando post dismantled near Highway 401 and Yonge Street following a grisly discovery Tuesday afternoon.


Forensic tests are underway to try and identify human remains found in a ravine in a wooded area just north of the Don Valley Golf Course's first tee box. Their next step will be to figure out how the person died.


Dental records or DNA samples may be required to positively identify the person. Clothing found with the skeletal remains may also yield some clues.


Police haven't released any information about the gender or age of the person, and it's not known how long the remains had been there.


The homicide squad has been notified and is monitoring the investigation, but police haven't indicated if there is any suspicion of foul play.


When human remains are found, it's a common practice for police to contact families of missing people as a courtesy, according to authorities.


In this case, one of the people police called was Lela Tabidze, the mother of missing teen Mariam Makhniashvili.


Tabidze told CP24 police told her remains had been found, but it's not known who they belong to.


In addition to Makhniashvili's mother, police also contacted Calvin Barry, a lawyer for the teen's father Vakhtang, who is currently serving a six-year prison sentence for stabbing three people in two separate incidents that occurred after the teen's disappearance.

In an interview with CP24 Friday afternoon Barry said he planned to travel to Millhaven Institution in Bath, Ontario to inform his client of the news.


"It's obviously going to cause upset," he said. "It's been very hard for Mr. Makhniashvili. In fact one of the findings by the judge when he was sentenced was that he had some delusional psychological disorders that spawned themselves from his missing daughter and the fact that he thought she was dead."


Barry said he spoke with Tabidze Friday and told her not to jump to any conclusions.


"It is a day by day thing. Other families have been notified about the remains that have been found and there is a lot of forensic testing that need to happen," he said. "Hopefully we will have a conclusion soon."


Police placed similar courtesy calls to the Makhniashvili family after previous discoveries of human remains, which turned out to be people other than their daughter, who was 17 when she disappeared in September 2009.


With files from CP24's Sue Sgambati, Katie Simpson and Cam Woolley


@ChrisKitching is on Twitter. Don't forget, for instant breaking news, follow @CP24 on Twitter.

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