Toronto police identify man who was killed in alleged ‘swarming’ attack last month

Weeks after Toronto police arrested eight teenage girls and charged them with the “swarming” and stabbing death of a homeless man, the victim has been identified as 59-year-old Ken Lee.

Lee, who a source previously told the Star had been dealing with homelessness for some time — with stays in shelter dating back years — was known to some as “Kenney.” He died near the Strathcona shelter hotel, where he had previously stayed, though he was no longer a resident there at the time.

To staff at the shelter, Lee was known as a sweet and quiet man, said David Reycraft, head of housing services for its operating agency, Dixon Hall, who would stop to check in on workers’ well-being.

That quiet life came to an end in the early morning hours of Dec. 18, when he was allegedly assaulted and stabbed by a group of GTA teenagers — all between the ages of 13 and 16. Police sources say they are investigating at least two possible other swarming incidents involving the same girls earlier in the same night, and believe they came into contact with Lee after they tried to steal a bottle of alcohol from his companion.

That’s when the violence erupted, and bystanders who saw Lee visibly injured flagged down emergency medical workers. After discovering that he had been stabbed, Lee was rushed to hospital, where he died shortly afterwards. His identity was not released right away, with police saying to their knowledge, “not all” his closest living relatives had been informed of his death.

Toronto outreach worker Doug Johnson Hatlem, too, said he’d been hearing about Lee’s care for others in conversations with those who knew him since his death in December. “From what I’ve heard, Kenney was trying to stand up for a friend of his when he was killed, and by all accounts, this was consistent with his consistently kind character.”

Lee’s name is expected to be added on Tuesday afternoon to the Toronto Homeless Memorial — a years-long ledger of lives lost amid homelessness, preserved at the Church of the Holy Trinity downtown. The monthly ceremony begins at the church at noon.

The late night killing sent shock waves through the city, where it’s extraordinarily rare for such young girls to be accused of armed violence like this, let alone accused of taking a life — with all eight now facing charges of second-degree murder. In the last decade, Toronto Police say they have no records of girls aged 13 or younger ever being charged with murder, with their current records management system going back to 2013.

Stephanie Sayer, a spokesperson for the force, said in conversation with homicide investigators, none could anecdotally recall any murder charges involving girls that young, either. Three of the girls had prior contact with police — not necessarily a criminal record — the service has said, while the other five did not. They are believed by investigators to have met in person after coming into contact through social media.

Several of the girls will face bail hearings in the coming weeks — one on Jan 20, two others on Jan. 25, and another on Jan. 27. One girl has already been released on bail with two sureties. The identities of all eight accused cannot be released under the rules set out by the Youth Criminal Justice Act.

With files from Betsy Powell, Jennifer Pagliaro and The Canadian Press

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