A suspect has been charged with first-degree murder in connection with the death of a 21-year-old Patrick Santos, whose lifeless body was found bound and beaten in the backyard of his Scarborough home nearly 20 years ago. Police previously said that Santos’ father discovered his son’s body on the back patio of his home on Bridlington Street, in the area of Ellesmere and Bellamy roads, at around 7:20 a.m. on Sept. 17, 2006. His feet and hands were bound, police said, and there was tape wrapped around his head. A DNA profile of the suspect was recovered but police were unable to identify the perpetrator.“ In 2020, investigators submitted the offender DNA profile for Investigative Genetic Genealogy with the assistance of OTHRAM Inc. While the forensic process did not lead to a suspect, it opened further investigative leads,” police said in the news release. “Using investigative process, investigators from the Cold Case unit were able to identify a person of interest in 2025. DNA was collected from the suspect and confirmed a match to the DNA evidence left at the scene of the homicide in 2006.” Pierre O’Connor, 43, of Hamilton, has now been arrested and charged with the murder. “Patrick was a young man. He had a job, a future ahead of him, and plans to move into his own place with his girlfriend,” Det.- Sgt. Stephen Smith said in a written statement. “While nothing will ever bring Patrick back to his family, today we can say that the person alleged to be responsible for taking his life has been identified, arrested, and will now have to answer for this crime before the courts.”
