Missing Children

Leslie Mahaffy

Leslie Mahaffy (July 1, 1976 – June 14, 1991) was a Canadian girl who was murdered by serial killer Paul Bernardo and Karla Homolka.

Mahaffy was out past her curfew and didn't want her parents to find out. She was trying to find a way in to the house when she was approached by Bernardo. Her body was found dismembered and encased in cement on June 29, 1991 in Lake Gibson near St. Catharines, Ontario. Investigators believed she was raped and tortured. This was confirmed when videotapes were discovered in the home of Bernardo and Homolka. The tapes show that she was held hostage for days and repeatedly assaulted.

Her disappearance was part of a perceived series of disappearances of Ontario schoolgirls (another kidnapping, that of Kristen French, was also due to Bernardo and Homolka. This was widely covered in Canadian newsmedia and remain one of the most sensational and well-known criminal cases in Canadian history.

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