Neighbours Disturbed By Presence Of Released ‘Transit Rapist’
Posted January 7, 2009 12:00 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Orville Dwayne Thompson spent 13 years in prison for a string of violent sexual assaults in Scarborough during the second half of 1992.
Now the 37-year-old is out and has moved to Ajax where he’s staying with family.
But the former offender’s presence isn’t being overlooked by residents in the area, especially after police issued a warning regarding his return.
“The citizens in Ajax and that area had a right to know he was moving in, it’s an extraordinary step, it’s an unusual step for a police service to use,” admitted Durham Police’s Dave Selby. “I can tell you in the last eight years we may have only done this three or four times.”
During the time Thompson’s believed to have committed his crimes he lived in the area of Morningside and Lawrence, attacking seven South Asian women between the ages of 43 and 78.
He was dubbed “The Transit Rapist” because he was said to follow his victims when they got off the bus.
Part of the immediate concern regarding his return stems from the fact that he was repeatedly denied parole while serving his sentence.
Locals like Karen Rimes-Howchin were quick to express their worry.
“I’m worried for myself, my friends and my family,” she said. “I tend to walk my dog on the streets after dark and that would terrify me, I would like to know that someone is in my area.”
But others say the advanced notice of Thompson’s return could do more harm than good.
“I don’t think the evidence supports that it’s a good idea,” argued Greg Rogers from the John Howard Society of Toronto. “This will not help this individual reenter society, it will make it that much more difficult for him.”
Police won’t say precisely which Ajax neighbourhood Thompson’s moved into, but there are 18 restrictions placed on him as part of his release including a strict curfew between the hours of 10pm and 6am.
