Crime Beat: Alison Parrott, Leader of the Pack | S1 E4

Good evening, I'm Antony Robart. this  is crime beat the stories behind some of   Canada's most high-profile homicides told  by the reporters who walk the beat every   day and the families demanding answers  we reveal the shocking evidence as it   was uncovered by investigators in their  quest for justice tonight a bright young   girl who was loved by her family and friends  a natural leader disappears without a trace it's so unlike her not to not to be there... Alison parrot is four foot ten weighs 75   pounds has blond hair and green eyes... sheer, sheer panic... it wasn't real... police believe she is   the victim of a very well laid trap... it was a  very high-profile case... we're after this guy   and we're gonna get him here's crime beat  reporter Karen Lieberman with the story of   Alison Parrott leader of the pack at 11 years old  Alison Parrott was already competing at top-level   cross country track meets... she became good at  running because she trained hard so she also   had the determination and the self-discipline  to keep at it she'd been chosen to represent   in the 1500 meter race at an upcoming  Track & Field tournament in New Jersey it was the summer of 1986 Alison answered a call to the family home in   Midtown Toronto on the morning of July  25th... they wanted to have a photograph   taken with the team that we're going to  New Jersey and she called me at work and   asked my permission we talked  she had to go down to varsity stadium she would have had no reason to be concerned Alison was young but she knew her way around the  city... we talked about how she would get there she   was used to going down to varsity to train  as well... she attended a called Gabrielle one a   French elementary school downtown and took public  transit every day... varsity stadium was just four   subway stops from home ...so it wasn't unfamiliar but  we went over it carefully... there weren't the kind   of fears in the 80s that people have today  and we all encouraged independence. Alison packed   up her pink purse and blue gym bag and headed  out to meet the photographer she was supposed   to be back home that afternoon when her parents  returned she wasn't there. that's so unlike her   not to be there just intuitively felt  that something serious was up. Alison always   knew to check in this time she didn't call and  didn't return home. what are the next hours like? I think shock panic sheer sheer panic and  then the police is there and then a couple of   people start coming round who had heard. all I can remember now is getting there and   being there and being there as the shock of  Alison not being home. Lesley Parrott's  longtime friend Pamela McNamara remembers those  initial hours. on the whole it was just it was   like it wasn't real that's what it was like. Alison left home at 11:30 that Friday morning hours had passed the Sun was starting  to go down darkness would soon set in we were all hoping quite honestly that Alison had gone to play at a friend's house and   forgotten something we were still we were still  positive on that evening. coming up where is Alison? welcome back after getting a call to attend  a photo shoot with her track team Alison headed off alone to varsity Stadium nobody  had heard from her since now back to Caryn   Lieberman with Alison Parrott leader of the  pack it's fall at the Parrott family farm the   leaves are hanging on but winter will come  soon... that's the cherries growing yeah so we   think a weeping cherry oh wow the birds will  love it ...Leslie Parrott's favorite season to   follow springtime that's when a weeping cherry  planted on her daughter's 21st birthday in a   copper birch will begin to bloom... and then we  have daffodils on both slopes and daffodils   at the entranceway and yeah it's gorgeous look at all these leaves they've all just come down at the center of the home is a tiny rocking chair  fit for a small child he was gifted to Allison on   her first birthday the first day that Alison  was born I held her in my arms I still remember   this vividly and I looked at her and the thought  that come to came to mind was she's very much her   own person then she became a big sister a bit  of a bossy big sister and you know and that's   exactly who Alison was she was very spunky very  determined filled with life all was laughing but   she was so much her own person ... there's a twinkle  in Leslie's bright blue eyes as she remembers her   daughter's childhood... she loved her friends and  she was very much a natural leader she was leader   of the pack wherever she went she was enthusing  with people she had some real natural leadership   abilities... Alison would come in and out of my  office a lot she would chat to me on the phone a   lot Alison was very good at not breaking the  rules she might try to push the boundaries but she   would never break the rules and part of the things  always to check in so we knew exactly where she   was all the time. hours had passed still no sign  of Alison police had lots of questions including   for Alison's parents Peter and Leslie. that Friday  evening both Peter and I go to the police station   four separate questioning. both were quickly ruled  out as suspects... and then that becomes a massive   search her parents and neighbors have gathered  round them say Alison is an intelligent cautious   girl who wouldn't take up with a stranger police  believe she is the victim of a very well laid trap   somebody who was able to present themselves with  such credentials that it was it became legitimate   in her mind and in mine means we've discussed  their going down and it seemed that it was right   for her to support the team in this way... and so  who is it it sort of flags to you that there was   no photo session... nobody at all I mean other other  than that we called some of the friends and we're   you're a photo session so yes I guess some we  called the coach and the coach isn't aware of   it but none of the other girls who are  going... there was never a photo shoot it was a ruse   to get Alison alone, so who was this supposed  sports photographer? police began to scour the   neighbourhood trying to locate the missing girl... you  have to keep looking and then go back and check   and look again and until you're perfectly sure in  your own mind that one area is clear and then you   move on to the next area and follow whatever be  it small whatever lead that you have have you any   leads at this point? nothing concrete no that's  the frustrating part about it tell me about the   search the search was scary it was well-planned  by friends there was a group of people that took maps and put people I can remember seeing a  line down Yonge Street of all the people that had   come to help and were waiting for their directions  as to where to go posters went up across the city   and police urged the public to keep a lookout... the  outpouring of people of neighbors of colleagues   and of strangers is just huge... somebody was  there all the time yeah and they were there   to either help in any way they could or go  out and search or whatever... AlisonParrott 4 foot   10 weighs 75 pounds has blonde hair and green  eyes and was wearing a green shirt blue shorts   and white shoes. that seemed particularly clear in  this place that perhaps somebody had [unintelligible] there was something about Allison that they this  person wanted... but it can wait and I think we're   both hopeful yet distraught Leslie and Peter  decided to release a video pleading for their   daughter's safe return. if you're the person who's  taking our daughter please please bring her home   and let her come home sadly I didn't go the right  way two days and then you know the police would   been in and out all weekend and then police come  and they we go upstairs and they give us the awful   news... coming up Alison's family grapples with  this horrific news and the question who did this welcome back for two days police searched the  city for Alison she left home on July 25th after   receiving a phone call about a photoshoot but  there was no such photo session here's Caryn Lieberman with the story of Alison Parott leader  of the pack police say two small boys discovered   Alison parrot's body last night along the Humber  River... you're grateful that you heal so quickly I   don't know if one could have endured that period  of a longer period of not knowing... police combed   the riverbanks for any clue that might lead to  Alison's killer .. we have the inner perimeter sealed   off we're doing a very minute conferral search of  that area and then we have a greater perimeter   that were that we're doing a grid search on  and so I can't comment on what we've come   up with so far we're just really right into the  meat of the search right now... tips were flooding   in from the public there had been sightings of  Alison on the subway the day she went missing   but no description of a suspect... all it takes  is one call from somebody out there and just   the right call in that set and usually these  types of cases that's how they they are broken two hot lines were set up for information that  might lead to the killer a person who claimed   to be a sports photographer who lured Allison  from her home someone who knew she was a runner   and had been training for an event the following  week ... well we've got some information and they are   chasing up various leads and information to get  in relation to people that may have been involved   with track lots of things but really nothing  that we want to thoroughly discuss at this time   you know what kind of person no not at this time  what about these various reports of the cause of   death chief strangulation asphyxiation what are  you saying about that? what I'm saying about the   situation police confirmed that Alison's cause  of death was asphyxiation reporters pushed for   more around that she was brutally raped? I  have no response to make that the hope was   that someone anyone had seen Alison with her  abductor. outside varsity stadium pamphlets were   handed out with Alison's picture and description  and help came from unusual places I've had many   calls yesterday from ex-cons and and they  they are trying to assess they don't tolerate   this sort of thing either... investigators began  to uncover evidence police started to reveal   the disturbing details of just what happened  to Alison Parott a crime so repulsive even   homicide detectives were rattled and plenty had  more and more sickening all the time I really   am as you know after seven years in the homicide  you would think well maybe you're you can sort of   you get hardened to it you don't get it's just  I find it really revolting you think there are   people out there there that that low that would  do something like that Alison had been raped   and strangled her naked body found facedown  in King's Mill Park in the city's West End. I've tried not to spend a lot of time there I  call it the black hole because one can never   actually know exactly how all this went down. and so the imagination can be a wicked thing   Alison suffered a wicked fate but who could  be so evil? police reached out to the FBI   in an effort to build a psychological profile  of the killer and announced a sizeable reward   reward of up to $50,000 for the arrest and  conviction of the person responsible for   the murder of Alison Parott but we have to  find some way of triggering a response from   the public who may inadvertently not realize  that they watched or saw something going down   as police proceeded with their investigation  the parrotts prepared to bury their daughter   just two blocks from the stadium family  and friends gathered for Alison's funeral this is a memorial service and we have come  to it and gathered here today to give thanks   for the light of Alison Parott. outside the church dozens of  police officers in uniform and plain clothes   scan the crowd should the killer be among them.  a quality of her spirit he is reflected in her   conduct the night before she was violated  a dear friend and neighbor had lost their   family pet dog and Alison took it upon herself  to prepare and distribute pamphlets seeking that   wee dog just 24 hours later posters would  be distributed seeking and missing out. family came from everywhere... my company flew in  my parents my brother and Peter's nephew from   Australia one of the many in attendance Janet  Jessup the mother of a nine year old girl who   was murdered under similar circumstances almost  two years before... well it certainly has brought   a lot of memories back for the three of us and  it was a beautiful service and we certainly know   where mr. and mrs. Parrott are at I've just had  a few words with both of them and I hope you know   we're going to help each other because it has  to be thought them home as mourners left the   service and police pressed on hours turned into  days days turned into weeks it still no arrests   my husband had gone back to work sitting alone at  home by myself all day I couldn't imagine anything more terrible you know just left with my my own  thoughts. Leslie returned to work desperate   for a distraction. I went back to work and walking  around the office and saying hello to everybody   it was always important to me that the person be  found it was not gonna bring Alison back but it   was critically important so there wouldn't be  any more Allison's I was called at home by the   one of the lead homicide investigators then Staff  Sergeant Kenson zarur and asked if I would join   a task force so I went for what was to be two  weeks we felt we would have a resolution very   quickly two weeks became one year... Steve Irwin now  an inspector with the Toronto Police Service then rookie just four years out of police college  he was the most junior on the homicide team. it   was a very high-profile case. police received more  public response to the Perrott case than any other   murder investigation before it and they had a  new tool to help and a very sophisticated new   computer system to find the person who abducted  Alison from her home on July 25th the computer   program was designed to sift through hundreds of  tips that police had received while it wouldn't   identify who the abductor was it would save time  for investigators narrowing down the suspects the   retrieval of information is much quicker Irwin  responded to countless calls from the public he   recalls one in particular from a woman who would  become a witness and this woman was with her two   children one of them was a daughter who was about  the same age what was very interesting in that   particular call was she was challenged that the  poster didn't represent what she recalled Alison   wearing which was actually accurate there was  some misinformation on the original poster in   the color of the shirt I was significant which  gave that particular witness more credibility   and that helped us with timing for when Alison  actually got on the subway because this woman   who I eventually interviewed months later had  kept the transfer ticket from when she got on   at York Mills so that really helped us to track  the path and steps that Alison had taken. Alison   could have been abducted anywhere on route  to varsity stadium so these types of tips   were significant in the investigation one that  would prove complicated even in simpler times   we didn't have a lot of surveillance cameras we  didn't have DNA it was so unusual for this type   of luring abduction sexual assault and murder  there was a belief that we should be able to   solve this much quicker and obviously we were  not able to it became more and more challenging information suggested Allison met her killer on  the northwest corner of varsity Stadium across the   street from a Royal Bank which was equipped with  three surveillance cameras. one was not working   the other one had been opened when it was reloaded  with old film and was overexposed and then there   was a third film that caught what we believe  is the image of Alison that was walking by. it   was a breakthrough in the case a single image  in black and white no head feet barely visible   but Owen wanted more colorization had just come  out within a few years of 1986 where they took   old black-and-white movies and colourized them  so I actually reached out that was a company   here in Toronto and reached out to them to say  so if I gave you a palette of colors could you   give me a sense of what colors even though  it's a black and whites film in an effort   again to try and substantiate that that was in  fact was Alison? confirmation Alison had made   it to the stadium so who did she meet up with ? next a suspect and a first-degree murder charge investigators have confirmed that Alison did  arrive at the stadium they must now determine   what happened next we looked in the neighborhood  we looked obviously in the area of varsity stadium   we looked at people associated to her school at  the running club that she was part of we looked   at track meets that she had been at and looked for  other victims young young girls mostly that had   been pursued by what I would say was potential  sex offenders and so there were many many many   different angles that we were looking at in  this particular case with her there were so   many potential places that this person could  have come across for her. Alison's killer had   done more than just come across her. he likely  first spotted her at the stadium he tracked her   for weeks we canvassed and found other Parrotts it's felt their name in the same way who had got   calls looking for Alison. and they stretched beyond  Toronto proper. it was January 1987 investigators   were honing in on a man who spoke with her weeks  before her murder. on June the 7th 1986 at the   Appleton Cup which was held at York University  at a track meet where Alison was a participant   a male in the only description we have is he's  a male white 30 or 35 years of age dressed in   a tracksuit came up and had some conversation  with her and this was around lunchtime. the path   the killer took was becoming clearer it was one  of the largest murder investigations in Canada   but with dwindling resources the task force had  been reduced to a handful of officers soon Steve   Irwin would become a permanent investigator in the  newly formed sexual assault squad put in place to   solve the case of the unknown Scarborough rapist  a man who had been preying on dozens of women in   a suburb of Toronto it would be DNA brand-new  to Canada that would crack that high-profile   case eventually DNA was what identified Paul  Bernardo in the Scarborough rape case as that   was now he was before the courts and charged I  actually asked to leave sexual assault to go work   at intelligence and it was so that I could work  for one of those original homicide investigators   and get out the exhibits from Alison's [unintelligible]   submit them to send our friends at Sciences and   see if we could develop a DNA profile it was the  success of DNA in the Bernardo case but center   wing digging into other unsolved murders that had  been sexually motivated cases from his time on the   Homicide Squad like Alison Parrott. I say I did hate  crimes by day and blood ins by night as we started   to collect samples so that we could have DNA for  in Alison's case. with Alison's case it was not a   great sample that we had basically it would take  two weeks for each level to process so the first   level we got helped us in that we could start  to eliminate people two weeks later we get the   second level and that meant we could eliminate  more people two weeks later the third level then   gave us the opportunity to start to actually  identify who it would be the fourth level start   to make it mathematically that you were had the  right person the fifth is the maximum and in her   case we got actually all five from a very very  small sample it meant every two weeks a large   pool of possible suspects would become smaller  we could start to say to Leslie and Peter Parrott hey we can eliminate some of these people which we  did and they might not have to have in the back of   their mind wondering if it was someone a neighbour  or an old friend or someone from the sports club   of parents of another child and start to answer  unanswered questions. Irwin was desperate to find   Alison's killer for him it was personal if Dad had  been killed in Jury and he was really determined   and I think he had a lot of empathy for our son as  well having been through something very similar in   his life he would continue to pursue the question  that had been haunting the Parotts for years by   that point who killed Alison as her family waited  for answers at an arrest almost 10 years had   passed. every year it doesn't get any easier the  the time leading up to today is very difficult   and then I become totally preoccupied and but  that's that's nothing compared to what she went   through. Leslie pleaded just like the day after her  daughter disappeared look into your heart look at   how you would feel if the person that that you  have the tiniest suspicions about were ever to   hurt another child Alison's family had a reason  to hold out hope police were finally getting   closer this individual certainly left us with a  fair number of clues about him and what he knew   of Alison and certainly with modern technology the  development of DNA is is definitely an asset to us ten long years of waiting the break everyone  had been waiting for. we had a call at 7:30 or   so in the morning saying that the police wanted  to come round right away and we of course we're   getting ready to go to work but it seemed like  we shouldn't go to work they come around and   they tell us that there is an arrest happening at  that time. Frances Roy covered his head with his   suit jacket as he was driven to the downtown  courthouse the appearance by the ponytailed   suspect lasted less than a minute outside  Frances Karl Roy's West End home well I was   stunned I was just absolutely stunned ... I saw him all the time it's like who's one of our   neighbors who's to walk around walk his dog go  for a jog at the courthouse this request from   Roy's lawyer all I'd ask is that the media and the  public remember he's charged he's not convicted   keep that distinction in mind remember that he's  presumed innocent and asked you to to wait before   you form any judgments Frances Karl Roy charged  with the first-degree murder of Alison Parrott I think there was a sense of relief and I don't  know if immediately but it's know what next the   trial the trial and the you know the trial  actually didn't happen for another three years. coming up a disturbing story from  the man charged with Alison's murder ten years after Alison was murdered the  trial finally gets underway and Alison's   story inspires a generation of children now back  to Caryn Lieberman with the conclusion of Alison   parot leader of the pack so who was this man now  charged with Alison's murder? he had come to our   attention he had a history of sex offenses  convicted sex offender had gone out west the   RCMP had reached into us as he came up in some  investigations there they sort of knocked on   the door and said hey you know he's still out  here have you looked at him information from   those cases was added to a new computer system  which allows police across the country to share   data about violent crime investigations at that  point the case was turned over to homicide they   did get a cast off something he touched for two  weeks police had waited for an opportunity to get   that cast off a sample of Roy's DNA and that  was what was the beginning of identifying him   the critical piece of evidence would be a  discarded cigarette butt as police tested the   DNA and gathered their final bits of evidence  Alison's family struggled just to get through   each day there were times that I felt life  was not worth living I remember one Sunday   afternoon crawling into my bed and weeping  because I never I always was quite careful   not to do it around around our son and he came  with like a little honing device and found me   and said I'm so sorry never wanted to you to see  me like this and he said it's okay you're a mom   I understand and he more than anyone else was  the absolute reason to keep going from whatever   it cost me the midst of all this evil you know  love kept shining through and and that's what   that's really what kept me going 13 years since  Alison's murder the Parrotts begin to relive the   horror of her death as the trial for Francis Karl  Roy begins that was the first time we thought of   the perpetrator the court heard Roy was a shop  clerk also a runner some recall him carrying   the camera he pleaded not guilty to Alison's  murder making a shocking claim to explain the   DNA evidence found in her body which matched his  semen. he said he came across the young girl's body in King's Mill Park while out for a jog he stopped  to urinate he claimed there had been semen on his   hand having masturbated earlier that day and  when he saw the corpse he violated it with his   finger this is what Francis Troy looked like 13  years ago when 11 year old Alison Parrott was lured   from her home raped and murdered Roy's testimony  wasn't the only element of doubt presented billow   and a wheeled trans driver with the TTC the  defense brought forth three witnesses who told   the court they had all seen a girl who might  have been Alison with a man who did not match   Roy's description the jury listened for days but  there was something jurors did not hear the judge   decided that what we call similar fact evidence  in this case that though he had raped two young   women before and one was there to testify that  that evidence should not be allowed into the   court to this day I'm still baffled right somebody  should be standing in the prisoners box without a   jury under able to understand the truth about  that person not only as Alison's mum but as a   member of our society hey I feel very ashamed and  angry . Francis Karl Roy had been on parole at the   time of Alice's murder he had been convicted  twice for raping teenage girls he had lured   away from public places with stories that seemed  credible. the assaults happened in wooded areas it was hard to ignore the similarities with  Alison's case. sadly the justice system failed   to protect Alison in the first place there  were convictions that were reduced there   was parole that was reduced and not well  supervised the Parrotts pleaded for change   but the law remained the same if evidence of  a prior conviction could do more to prejudice   and accuse persons right to a fair trial  the judge can exclude it juries are there   as representatives of common sense and common  sense when a similar crime has been committed   before it's only common sense that that makes  part of a why that person should be guilty   despite the seeds of doubt the jury did not  believe Roy's defense after six excruciating   days of deliberations the jury convicted 41  year-old Frances Carl Roy of first-degree   murder in Allison's death sentenced to life  in prison no chance of parole for 25 years Leslie remembers vividly the day the decision was  handed down but she recalls it mattered less to   her nothing would bring her back so yes I was  tremendously pleased that justice had been done   I was not elated like everyone else because I  still left with the hugest hole in my heart and   so the there was no joy in what would be her last  time before the crush of cameras Leslie took the   focus off the now convicted killer and placed  it back on her Alison but Alison was one of   these people that had the ability to make a huge  difference in this world it is only so sad that   that deference has to be made in her death and  not in her life the leaves are falling from the   trees at the parot family farm life is peaceful  quiet there are reminders of Alison frozen in   time an 11-year old girl a lover of life a friend  a big sister a runner a child who liked to laugh   a daughter whose absence is always present never  far away she's marked by the trees in the garden but four years oh there's one tree  a copper birch the on the first   anniversary of Alison's death neighbors  and friends got together and planted a   tree and then another tree that is a weeping  cherry in the middle of the garden that we   planted on her what would have been her 21st  birthday so they're both quite mature trees once a cottage to visit on holidays and  weekends Leslie now spends most of her   time with her husband Peter up at the farm  alison is everywhere the tiny rocking chair   the pictures on the walls the trees marking  her life for decades Leslie has lived with   grief she has used her own experience of losing  a daughter to help others the first thing is to   honor her people are filling themselves Leslie  offers support through her longtime role at the   bereaved families of Ontario there is no  closure of losing a job because there's no   closure of love you know she could work out the  right thing to say to have someone's life get   better Pamela remains a close friend and I can't  really think of anything better to say about a   person she helped and helped anyone and everyone  I love when I talked to Leslie and I've talked   to her recently I tend to speak to her absolutely  communicate every July 25th they've got you know   their lovely grandchildren but then there's this  piece that's trapped in time that will never it   never moves and you wonder you know what their  lives would have been and what would have come what is Alison's legacy for me being able to  help other people as an incredibly important   part of Alison's legacy it's all about love the  whole thing of helping kids be confident and be   aware and be alert out in the world that again  it's another bit of how Alison lives on working   for a large ad agency my colleagues they want you  to do something you know things aren't always as   they appear they wanted to use the skills to help  prevent future you know any future crimes like   this a national street proofing campaign born out  of Alison's death what should you do if someone   stops to talk or ask directions we were able to  educate kids right across the country working   with police forces so you've always got to be  on your toes with a message meant to empower   children not to scare them rather to teach them  and provide important tools one of the things   that I'm really sad about is that sometimes people  have said well Alison was that mark that moment   that it was no longer to run till the good heard  her murder caused kids to be kept at home and not   out in the streets and and taking away some of  the independence of childhood and I think frankly   that's wrong yes you need to have kids be kids  be safe hey but you need to help kids grow up and   to be independent and what happened with Alison  for a stranger abduction it's so incredibly rare more than anything I want people to remember  she was a spunky beautiful determined happy   happy child who was so loved loved by a mom  loved by your dad loved by brother loved by   her friends and until that fateful day  she'd had the best life a kid could have in 2021 it will have been 35 years since Alison  Parrott was killed Francis Karl Roy will be up   for parole Alison's family is preparing for  the process to open up old wounds but they   continue to focus on the good times all the  good memories all the while Alison lives on   forever that happy child I'm Antony Robart thank you for joining us tonight on crime beat to hear more about other high-profile  Canadian cases check out the podcast   crime beat with me Global  News crime reporter Nancy   Hicks you can listen for free on Apple  podcast Spotify or on curious Kass CA you

Channel: Crime Beat TV

Views: 561,818

Rating: 4.7482657 out of 5

Keywords: Crime beat, Crime, Crime stories, true crime, real life crime, Nancy Hixt, Nancy Hixt crimebeat, crimebeat, crime beat podcast, alison parott, the murder of alison parrott, alison parrott

Id: VKC9ZkGoAqE

Length: 45min 16sec (2716 seconds)

Published: Sat Apr 04 2020