Steven John McGuire is shown in a police handout photo. Toronto police say a tip helped them make arrest McGuire in Alberta in connection with two sexual assaults dating back two decades.The Canadian Press
Toronto police say a tip helped them make an arrest in connection with two sexual assaults dating back two decades.
Police say evidence has linked the suspect to the alleged crimes that took place eight months apart, one in 1993 and the other in 1994.
In one incident, police say a 19-year-old woman was pulled under a parked tractor-trailer, where she was sexually assaulted and then robbed by a man armed with a knife.
In the other, police say a man climbed up to a second-storey apartment and sexually assaulted a 46-year-old woman at knifepoint before stealing her purse.
The arrest comes more than a year after police offered a $50,000 reward for information that led to the identification or capture of the suspect.
Toronto police Det. Ali Ansari says 43-year-old Steven John McGuire is charged with sexual assault and robbery in the 1993 incident, and breaking and entering, sexual assault with a weapon, robbery and threatening death in the 1994 incident.
Mr. McGuire appeared in court Sunday and was remanded into custody. His next hearing is scheduled for Jan. 21.
Police revealed few details Monday about the investigation, saying they couldn't discuss the nature of the tip they received.
But Ansari said Mr. McGuire has been living outside Ontario since 2005 and is known to police in several jurisdictions, including Toronto.
"We want the community to know that we don't give up on cases," he said in a news conference, adding the victims were "relieved" to hear of the arrest.
Police have released a composite sketch of Mr. McGuire in the hopes of stirring up more information.