A look at some murder cases in Canada where no bodies were found

A trial in Edmonton started this week for Travis Vader, who is charged with first-degree murder in the deaths of two seniors who vanished almost six years ago. The bodies of Lyle and Marie McCann have never been found. Experts say murder cases that get to trial when no bodies have been found are rare. Here are some past cases in Canada:

June 1991: A jury finds Jacob Wanner, 59, not guilty of second-degree murder in the death of his estranged wife. Wihelmina Wanner was last seen in 1989 on New Year’s Day in Red Deer, Alta. Blood and hair were found in her apartment bathroom, along with a kitchen knife. When he was released, Wanner said he was relieved and wanted to get on with his life.

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December 1994: Peter Stark is found guilty of the first-degree murder of 14-year-old Julie Stanton of Pickering, Ont. She was last seen getting into Stark’s car in 1990. There was no crime scene evidence, but Stark had made comments to a jailhouse informant that he raped a girl and killer her with an axe. Stanton’s remains were found on a rural property two years later.

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October 2000: A jury convicts Dr. Abraham Cooper, 61, of manslaughter in the death of fellow doctor Doug Snider in Fairview, Alta. Snider, 59, disappeared in 1999 after telling his wife he was going to meet Cooper at their clinic. Police found his blood on Cooper’s running shoes and in the trunk of his car and charged him with first-degree murder. The defence argued Snider had faked his death to frame Cooper, who was suing him for allegedly trying to destroy the practice. Cooper was sentenced to 10 years.

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June 2001: Timothy Culham, 29, is convicted of the first-degree murder of Hugh Sinclair, a 72-year-old Toronto antique collector, who disappeared in 1999. Smears of Sinclair’s blood were found in his apartment and his DNA was discovered in a car Culham had rented. The Crown argued Culham killed the senior to steal his antiques, pay off debts and fund a gambling addiction. In 2003, some of Sinclair’s remains were found near a highway outside the city.

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April 2008: A jury acquits Robert Baltovich of second-degree murder in the death of his girlfriend Elizabeth Bain. The 22-year-old vanished on her way to a night class at the University of Toronto’s campus in Scarborough in 1990. Her abandoned car was later found with blood stains in the back. Baltovich was originally convicted in 1992 and served eight years, but a second trial was ordered on appeal. His lawyers have alleged Bain was actually the victim of notorious sex killer Paul Bernardo.

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February 2014: James Parise, 26, pleads guilty to manslaughter in the death of Catherine Todd in Kitchener, Ont. The 48-year-old woman had disappeared a year earlier. Parise, originally charged with second-degree murder, admitted he had paid Todd for sex and beat her in a fit of rage. He then dumped her body in a landfill. Court heard Parise enlisted two friends to help him dispose of the body and other evidence. He was sentenced to nine years.

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