Calgary police say they are investigating whether the suspect arrested in a gruesome torture case that spans two Prairie provinces may have other alleged victims.
Det. Doug Crippen said Thursday that other individuals have come forward, and he confirmed that there are currently "parallel investigations" looking into the actions of Dustin Paxton.
"I can't get into the specifics of other parallel investigations. As we receive the information, we are following up the information aggressively to ensure that anybody who has encountered a crime is afforded the opportunity to have a bias-free investigation," Det. Crippen said at an afternoon news conference.
"At this point we are speaking with other individuals and we are encouraging if there are any other individuals who need to report a criminal act with regard to this matter that they come forward."
Police say the 30-year-old Mr. Paxton had been living under an assumed name in Edmonton for the past four months before being taken into custody in that city late Tuesday.
He faces charges that include aggravated assault and forcible confinement. The charges deal with crimes that are alleged to have occurred in both Calgary and Regina.
The alleged victim was starved, burned and had parts of his tongue and lips cut off before being dumped at a hospital in Regina earlier this year.
"This case was in particular the worst investigation that I have entered into in my time as a police officer with the Calgary Police Service," said Det. Crippen, who travelled to Edmonton to interview Mr. Paxton.
"I can't speculate on why this particular individual did what he is alleged to have done."
Police in Regina and Calgary issued warrants for Mr. Paxton on Monday — more than four months afterthe alleged victim was dumped at the hospital.
The 26-year-old weighed just 87 pounds, down from his usual weight of 245, when he was left there on April 16. His family has said that in addition to extensive physical injuries, he suffered brain trauma and amnesia.
The alleged victim was reported missing in Calgary on April 12.
His family said he moved to Calgary from Winnipeg two years ago to work for a moving company and they lost contact with him in February.
Details about what might have happened during that time began to emerge after a man was dumped at the hospital. A landlord at a Regina apartment building said he rented a suite to the alleged victim in mid-March and a man living below that suite said he regularly heard disturbing sounds coming from there. Officers raided the apartment as part of their probe.
Word of the arrest was also welcomed by the victim's family and more than 48,000 supporters on a Facebook page dedicated to the case.
While police only recently publicly fingered Mr. Paxton as their suspect, the victim's family has been pointing to him for months, using the Internet to make its case.
His mother thanked police and said her son is "safe at last" and referred to Det. Crippen as "a hero."
"So good to see the prompt arrest after the long-awaited arrest warrant," wrote another woman.
Mr. Paxton is to make his first court appearance in Calgary Aug. 27.
Regina police spokeswoman Elizabeth Popowich said the case has drawn a lot of attention.
"We now have the start of the judicial process ahead of us and that's a good thing. It helps bring some resolution to the victim and the victim's family," said Ms. Popowich.
"I spoke with one of our investigators this morning and he said that the family is obviously quite relieved and ... had learned also from the family of the victim, that the victim himself is quite relieved to hear the news."
Investigators have said that there were challenges in the investigation, including that the alleged victim initially couldn't give officers a statement because of his condition. They also said they needed the four months to gather evidence and build a case.