A convicted U.S. sexual predator killed at least four women in Canada after fleeing the country while on bail. Authorities believe there may be more victims.
Gary Allen Srery, who died in a U.S. prison in 2011, escaped to Canada after posting bail for a 1974 rape charge in Los Angeles. He hid in the Calgary area and targeted women.
Through DNA advancements, Srery was linked to the February 1976 murders of 14-year-olds Eva Dvorak and Patricia McQueen, whose bodies were found in an underpass, according to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) in Alberta.
Seven months later, he allegedly killed Melissa Rehorek, a 20-year-old housekeeper found dead in a ditch along a major highway west of Calgary, and Barbara MacLean, a 19-year-old bank employee who disappeared after leaving a bar in February 1977.
Almost five decades and 850 potential suspects later, Srery was identified as the killer in 2023 through genetic genealogy, the RCMP said during a Friday press conference.
DNA from an unknown male was confirmed as the same suspect in Rehorek and MacLean’s murders in 2003, but a match wasn’t found until 20 years later.
Canadian authorities worked with U.S. and international agencies during the 2023 investigation into Srery, who was serving a life sentence for rape in an Idaho prison in 2011.
If he were still alive, he would be 81 years old and charged with the four murders, according to authorities. But law enforcement believes there are more victims. Srery lived illegally in Canada from 1974 to 1998 and led a transient lifestyle, the RCMP said. He used several aliases, often changed his appearance, and moved around Canada.
Srery was finally caught for a sexual assault in 1998 in New Westminster, Canada, and deported to the U.S., where he was convicted in Idaho for sexually motivated crimes and sentenced to life in prison.
The RCMP created a map and timeline of his potential whereabouts in Canada, including Calgary from 1976 to 1977, and Alberta and British Columbia from the mid-1970s to 2003.
Police don’t believe his crime spree was limited to the four murders and have asked the public for help in detailing his movements.
“We believe the suspect is involved in more than four homicides, possibly many more, in Alberta, British Columbia, or the western U.S.,” RCMP Staff Sgt. Travis McKenzie said during Friday’s press conference.
One of Srery’s U.S. victims gave an emotional impact statement before he was sentenced to prison, detailing the lasting damage he caused her.
The RCMP urged anyone who recognizes Srery or knew him by any of his aliases to contact the Alberta RCMP Historical Crime Unit via email at [email protected] or by phone at 780-509-3306.
“For over forty years, investigators have pursued those responsible for these murders,” Superintendent David Hall, Officer in Charge of the Alberta RCMP’s Serious Crimes Branch, said. “Identifying the perpetrator doesn’t bring Eva, Patsy, Melissa, or Barbara back, but we hope it provides some answers for their families.”
Victims’ Synopses
- Eva Dvorak and Patricia McQueen, both 14: Close friends who attended the same junior high school in Calgary. They disappeared on Feb. 14, 1976, and their bodies were found the next day under the Happy Valley Overpass on Highway 1.
- Melissa Rehorek, 20: Originally from Ontario, she moved to Calgary in spring 1976 and worked as a housekeeper. She lived at the YWCA in downtown Calgary and was last seen on Sept. 15, 1976. Her body was found the next day in a ditch near a highway outside the city.
- Barbara MacLean, 19: Moved from Nova Scotia to Calgary in 1977 and worked at a local bank. She was last seen leaving a hotel bar on Feb. 25, 1977. Her body was found about six hours later by a dog walker in Calgary.
