Douglas Donald Moore

Case record: Douglas Donald Moore

Status and legal outcome

Douglas Donald Moore died of an apparent suicide in a cell at the Maplehurst Detention Centre on April 2, 2004.

Moore had committed suicide in his cell at Maplehurst Detention Centre before police could officially charge him with the murders in which two bodies were dismembered.

The offence

Moore was described as a convicted pedophile and later as a serial killer who killed two men, Robert Grewal and Joseph Manchisi, and disposed of bodies that were dismembered.

Moore killed Meadowvale resident Robert Grewal, 22, and Joseph Manchisi, 20, of Milton. Peel Regional Police believed Moore also killed 15-year-old Meadowvale resident Rene Charlebois, but the teen who later faced a sentence was not charged in connection with Charlebois’ death.

Peel police believed Moore killed Grewal and Manchisi because he believed they had stolen drugs and money from his home. Moore and others described that he was robbed in October 2003, including theft of marijuana stash, credit cards and cash, and gold chains and rings.

In the investigation period, Moore was also described as having sexual assault charges pending from his earlier offences against young boys, and he was awaiting trial on charges he sexually assaulted young boys when he died.

Dismemberment and missing remains

The Grewal family and the Manchisi family said they had not been able to find all the remains. The teen’s highly-publicized trial involved disposal of bodies and cover-up of the murders after dismemberment.

The teen admitted he held the dismembered heads of both men inside a car wash as Moore washed the blood off. The teen also testified that he helped bury separate holes near train tracks, possibly in the Cornwall area, and then buried the slain men’s heads and hands. The burial site was disputed by the teen’s insistence that he did not know it, while police investigations continued.

The bodies were reported as missing in terms of remaining body parts, with later finds identifying dismembered remains.

Investigation

Peel Regional Police believed Moore also killed 15-year-old Meadowvale resident Rene Charlebois, whose body was found in an Orangeville area dump on March 19, 2004. Police said they had not charged anyone with Charlebois’ death.

DNA work was conducted on hairs left behind on brushes and razors after Charlebois’ body was found. It took almost two weeks to determine whose body had been found.

Peel police believed the murders of Manchisi and Grewal occurred in the garage of Moore’s Mississauga townhome in the community of Meadowvale. The dismemberment work was described as involving Moor’s garage and subsequent transport in plastic containers with the teen’s help to Quebec to bury bodies.

Peel police and Halton police were involved in missing person reports for Manchisi and Grewal. The Grewal family filed with Peel police and the Manchisi family filed with Halton police. The families believed police did not take the reports as seriously as they should have.

Detectives sought a warrant related to the sex-assault charges and later worked to build a case on murders after Charlebois’ remains were found.

Police scouring included searches for a blue 1992 Honda Civic that Manchisi and Grewal had been driving when they disappeared. A caller told police it had been spotted in Orangeville, and someone was holding the car for Moore. After Moore’s arrest, that person called Martin and asked what to do with the car; Martin checked with Moore in jail. Moore’s instruction to Martin was: "Burn it."

An allegation was made that on March 27 someone paid $400 to destroy the car, but police seized the Honda before it could be torched.

Police interviews included questioning Moore, but it was not known what he said to police during key investigative moments.

Arrests and custody

Moore was arrested in connection with sex assault allegations against three boys after foster parent allegations and police investigation into the Belfountain-area home.

Moore was tracked to a Burlington motel. Associates told police the 36-year-old ex-con had vowed not to go back to prison and might be suicidal.

Police entered and struck him twice with a stun gun, leaving burn marks on his stomach and his back. He was bumped around during the arrest, with his body and bald head bruised.

Moore was charged with 11 counts of sexual assault on the three boys and taken to court for a bail hearing. He was not released and his case was put over for a week. Moore steadied himself with a hand against the jail cell wall at Maplehurst Detention Centre, with one ear and the side and back of his head black and blue and his face cut. Moore told his mother: "They beat me, mom." He also said: "They told me to lay still, then kicked me in the head. Then they kicked the other side of my head and said `Hey, we told you to lie still.'"

Moore also said: "What they are saying about me, it's not true," referring to the sex-assault allegations.

He remained in custody at Maplehurst Detention Centre and later died there.

Trial

A teen helper received a six-month jail sentence from Justice Minoo Khoorshed in the summer, with appeal denied by an Ontario Court of Appeal panel that quashed the teen’s appeal.

Court of Appeal decision

Three Ontario Court of Appeal judges ruled that the 16-year-old boy should be jailed for helping Moore dispose of the bodies of two victims and cover up the murders.

The panel of judges heard arguments from the teen’s lawyer, Charlie Waite. The judges announced the appeal "must be dismissed." The judges would provide reasons for the dismissal at a later date.

The teen was in custody serving the second month of his sentence after being found guilty on two counts of accessory to murder after the fact in the deaths of Meadowvale resident Robert Grewal, 22, and his friend Joseph Manchisi, 20, of Milton, in November 2003.

Sentencing in the trial court

In October (year implied by context around the summer appeal and the later Court of Appeal decision), Justice Minoo Khoorshed issued a sentence of six months in "secure custody," four to be served in a youth jail facility, with the remaining two months to be served under community supervision.

Waite argued that the teen had been under the influence of Moore and that a jail term was too harsh. Waite argued that the teen helped Moore only because he was scared and confused.

Crown attorney Feroza Bhabha said while the teen was under the influence of Moore, he still showed "some initiative" in the crimes. She stated: "He disposed of the blade used to dismember the bodies without any instruction to do so from Moore," she said.

Justice Khoorshed’s sentencing remarks included that he "had no hestitation" sending the teen to jail because of the "horror of the crime" and because the teen helped cover up the murders by denying he knew anything about the killings for more than five months.

Evidence and victim impacts referenced in the trial account

The teen testified he met Moore through a school friend and considered him a "father figure."

The teen testified that he helped Moore dig separate holes near train tracks, possibly in the Cornwall area, and then buried the slain men’s heads and hands, while insisting he did not know the burial site.

The Grewal family welcomed the failed appeal. Grewal’s uncle, Harpal Singh Grewal, said: "This boy deserves to be punished for what he has done, and letting him out of jail early would have been a travesty," and also said: "Nothing will bring my nephew back, but by letting this boy out of jail early would have been encouragement for him to continue committing horrible crimes."

Bhabha said the teen should serve his full sentence, stating: "He showed a callous disregard for the victims' families ... spent the money he stole from Moore on his friends, knowing full well his story caused Moore to take their lives." She added: "The horrific impact of his participation continues for the families. They have not been able to find all the remains."

Sentencing history (for Moore’s pending charges context)

Moore committed suicide in a jail cell at Maplehurst Detention Centre while awaiting trial on charges he sexually assaulted young boys.

Moore’s death occurred after he was charged with 11 counts of sexual assault and while his case was put over for a week at court for a bail hearing.

Appeals

No appeal outcome for Moore was included. A separate teen’s appeal was denied, with the Ontario Court of Appeal panel announcing: "must be dismissed." Reasons were reserved for later.

Outcome

Moore died in custody on April 2, 2004 in an apparent suicide at Maplehurst Detention Centre.

Police continued investigations into bodies and remains after his death. Quebec police announced that a dismembered body found in November was Robbie Grewal’s. Shortly after, Joe Manchisi’s remains were found in a park.

Police said Moore had an accomplice, who had not yet been charged.

Aftermath

After Moore’s death, people involved in related events expressed views.

Bill, Moore’s stepfather, shouted at police when the news filtered out: "Get the hell away from here," and said: "Don’t believe that Doug is the monster they make him out to be."

Moore’s mother, Mildred, said: "I don't think he did the things they say he did. I don't think Doug was an angel but I don't think he killed those boys." She also said: "I may not like some of the things he has done in his life but he's still my son and I love him."

In the days after Moore’s death, a number of related developments were mentioned:

• Joe Manchisi said goodbye to his son and (coincidentally) to a Halton cop and close friend who died of an aneurysm, with both eulogized in the same funeral home at the same time.
• The Grewal family said goodbye to Robbie in a funeral that was described as a celebration of his life.
• René Charlebois was mourned by a family that believed faster action by police could have saved his life.
• The Norton family learned that Peter, the foster father, had terminal cancer.
• Sandra Martin told a court hearing she planned to contest her criminal charges.
• Douglas Moore was cremated.

Other details

Missing person reports and timeline of the discovery of bodies and charges

• Robert Grewal and Joseph Manchisi were murdered Nov. 12, 2003 and then dismembered by Moore.
• The teen helper was found guilty and sentenced, with appeal denied on December 07, 2005.
• Rene Charlebois’s body was found in an Orangeville area dump on March 19, 2004.
• Moore died in his cell at Maplehurst Detention Centre at 3:30 a.m. the morning after April 1, 2004, after a guard found him hanging.

Sexual assault background referenced in narrative detail

The narrative included extensive detail about Moore’s upbringing, including that his father sexually assaulted him by fondling his genitals from when Moore was 7 until he was 12. The narrative also stated that Moore’s father sexually assaulted other children in the family and that one physically and developmentally challenged brother was spared.

The narrative also described Moore’s own prior sexual assaults and criminal history, including charges and pleas related to sexual assault of young boys, break and enter, drug-related matters, probation, and jail terms.

Police and court references within the narrative detail

• A psychiatrist at Clarke Institute, Dr. Robert Dickey, examined Moore in preparation for sentencing and concluded Moore had an emerging sexual problem and recommended that Moore stop drinking and seek treatment.
• Another psychiatrist, Dr. Don Atcheson, noted pedophilic tendencies and that they always occurred after drinking and having an argument with a girlfriend concerning impotence.
• A probation officer named Duane Sprague prepared a pre-sentence report that included comments that Moore’s formative years were turbulent and disruptive and that Moore had yet to understand why a father would victimize his own children.

Quotes included in the narrative detail

The narrative included additional verbatim remarks:

• Moore told friends after a looting incident: "That was really dumb," and later: "I sold dope so well I could not keep up with the demand," and: "I may have a problem," and: "Where is the justice?"
• Moore threatened: "I am going to kill you all."
• On a question about papers: "Is this going to get out in the papers?"
• A line to police about dealing drugs: "Sure I deal drugs." and: "I sell drugs but you have to catch me first."
• Moore’s instruction about a car: "Burn it."
• Moore said during jail injury to his mother: "They beat me, mom" and: "They told me to lay still, then kicked me in the head.
• Moore said: "What they are saying about me, it's not true," referring to the sex-assault allegations.

People and relationships named in the narrative detail

The narrative identified or referenced:

• Mildred Moore (mother)
• Douglas Moore Sr. (father; later moved to Vancouver)
• Bill (stepfather; later referred to as “Mildred’s husband Bill”)
• Trudy Finch and her sons Ben, Sam, and Bobby
• Bonnie Carlson and her son Johnny
• Detective Scanlon and Detective Chief Inspector references in narrative detail
• Brock Detective Bill Scanlon (Peel Detective Bill Scanlon)
• Joey Jenson and Constable Dale Johnstone
• Richard and other named individuals in Hamilton and Ontario narrative portions including Linda Norton, Peter Norton, Sandra Martin, Alan, Tom, Jimmy, Karen, Justin, Jenny Holland, and Donna McKennon
• The teen and victims in the accessory after the fact case: Robert Grewal, Joseph Manchisi, and the 16-year-old teen helper
• The identified additional victim named: René Charlebois
• The death notice details included Douglas Moore’s cremation and various family reactions.

Youth sentence details stated in the narrative

The teen helper’s sentence and custody arrangements included:

• Six-month jail sentence
• Four months in youth jail facility and two months under community supervision in the initial disposition
• The teen was in custody serving the second month after the appeal decision
• Waite asked for reversal of a jail sentence imposed by Justice Minoo Khoorshed
• Manchisi’s statement included: "Even the six months is bogus, a joke. He's not in jail. He's in a youth facility."