CANADA Canada - Samuel Lottery, 17, London, Ont, 19 Jan 1996

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I too am from the London area,

I have to wonder if someone affiliated with the church had been abusing him, they got worried that he was going to tell, and needed to silence him

Someone must recognize that stationary, doesn't mean that they wrote the letters, who really keeps track of their stationary, I wouldn't notice a few sheets missing. Maybe if they would release some examples of the hand writing someone might recognize it. Which could very well trigger someone's memory.

We have way too many cold cases in the London area,
 
That is an interesting angle, but why would the church member or leader have some animosity afterwards towards the family.
 
skinnycat said:
I too am from the London area,

I have to wonder if someone affiliated with the church had been abusing him, they got worried that he was going to tell, and needed to silence him

Someone must recognize that stationary, doesn't mean that they wrote the letters, who really keeps track of their stationary, I wouldn't notice a few sheets missing. Maybe if they would release some examples of the hand writing someone might recognize it. Which could very well trigger someone's memory.

We have way too many cold cases in the London area,
Click to expand...

Welcome skinnycat!
The strange thing about the stationary is, that perp/s could have used any paper at all, so why use 'nice' stationary, which may help identify who/where it came from.
One sheet taken/used, might be a fluke, or what was available, but using it again, for the second letter, seems pointed somehow, imo.
 
The first letter being sent to the church, if it was a random stranger that murdered him, how would they know that the family was very involved with the church, if it was drug thugs that murdered him, they don't waste their time sending letters, and they certainly don't give a heads up as to where to search

I think that the person that murdered him felt some kind of guilt/remorse and that is why they made mention of searching along the Thames, they wanted him found. For some crazy reason they took him from his family yet wanted him returned to them

There have been other killers who have taunted families, there is something about that first letter going to the church, maybe the killer was in a sick way trying to get support for the family from the church. There was no letter sent to the police taunting them, like other killers have done, you know the catch me if you can kind

I think that there are a lot of holes in the investigation, at first it wasn't an all on search, probably considered him a runaway. When did they first release what the paper looked like and an example of the handwriting to the public? I also find it odd that his body was in a place that wasn't so secluded, lots of people walk around down around the river,all the people that fish along there, no one noticed the smell of decompostion. The reason that I mention the smell, I had a stray cat die at the back of my property, you could smell the death in my house, it was only a 10 pound cat, it was a good 100 feet from my house yet you could smell it inside the house and outside, it is a very distinct smell, I'd never smelt it before. After getting the letters did the police even search along the Thames?
 
The stationary I think is just what they had easy access to, they wrote the letters after the murder,

I certainly wouldn't have noticed a few pages of my stationary missing, and I don't think that years later I would remember if I had that exact stationary.

Was this stationary tested to see if there was glue residue on the top edge, so we would know if this is loose leaf stationary or in a pad form

I think that the hand writing and also the mannerism of writing is going to be a major point in solving this crime
 
Now, I almost think a church official is responsible, possibly the result of some kind of abuse that might have reach a point where a career or status was at stake.
 
Regarding the stationary....I think I would recognize stationary that I had -- perhaps not enough to be certain but enough to make me think about whether someone in my house could possibly have been involved.

Who would have had such stationary? I think it would have typically been older people, or young women who were given stationary by older relatives. If a young man took some of that stationary accessible in his home (with older parents or sisters) then wouldn't he have been worried that the stationary would lead to his family?

Of course, this isn't to say that the murderer was a male. Is it possible that the murderer, or someone unrelated to the murder, wanted to point the finger at someone by stealing stationary from their home?

Many more thoughts swirling around in my dense head!
 
I think the comments re stationery are appropriate.

Stationery is a sign of dignity in terms of thank you notes etc. - something that is ''lost'' unless a family member introduces the concept. I am thinking that it is a sign that someone had access to someone else's stash of stationery like a grandparent. I really believe it holds the ''clue''.

if LE showed the stationery to the congregation someone might have ''recognized'' it.....JMHO.....
 
First off, when I previewed my post there was a smiley wearing glasses in the title & Idk why bc I didn't put it there so idk what that's about but apologize in advance (I think it's gone but am questioning how many posts I made like that lol #embarrassing)

Re-reading the statement from LPS, it says specifically "the second letter was written on the stationary below (photo of stationary)". Maybe both letters were not written on the same paper then?

Regarding TMans' questions, I think this person was angry at the Lottery family. Maybe killing Samuel was a message to the parents? To hurt them? Maybe someone didn't want them at the church?

Regarding the decomp, I think that bc Samuel was killed in the winter it must have helped conceal some of the odour. The Thames already reeks anyway so I feel like a lot of ppl would brush off the scent. I know I've been by the river & smelled something rank & kept walking. Maybe I won't ignore things like that anymore!!

The other thing is that bc it was so long ago, the pathways along the river have changed. I think the stretch of river between Blackfriars & Oxford didn't have such easy access at that time. There would have been access from the park if you enter just north of Oxford street but between Oxford & Blackfriars Bridge, the river is "lined" or paved in concrete & slopes right down into the water. I'm struggling to describe it but basically there are only so many access points where one could dispose of a body without getting caught in bushes or leaving a bloody trail in the snow or slipping into the water. Unless you dump the body from the bridge via a car...?

Does anyone have info or a link to the Body Farm or point me in the direction of info on decomposition? I want to know where Samuels' belongings are. What happened to his clothes? What if a jacket or shoes washed to the riverbank? How would anyone know it was his? Can body parts decompse & lift out of the clothing? Were any marks found on Samuels' remains? Were there marks on his skull? Any marks on any other bones to indicate a knife or gun or blunt object was used?

I can't even lie, I am very disappointed to see how slow LPS was to react & it's pathetic that they took so long to look for Samuel. Not just Samuel but other cases as well. There seems to be no sense of urgency & it's not as if the city is full of crime. Thank the Universe that the killer wrote those letters or they may never have found Samuel at all. The whole thing is just so wrong on so many levels.
 
Snoopster said:
Regarding the stationary....I think I would recognize stationary that I had -- perhaps not enough to be certain but enough to make me think about whether someone in my house could possibly have been involved.

Who would have had such stationary? I think it would have typically been older people, or young women who were given stationary by older relatives. If a young man took some of that stationary accessible in his home (with older parents or sisters) then wouldn't he have been worried that the stationary would lead to his family?

Of course, this isn't to say that the murderer was a male. Is it possible that the murderer, or someone unrelated to the murder, wanted to point the finger at someone by stealing stationary from their home?

Many more thoughts swirling around in my dense head!
Click to expand...

I agree with those thoughts! Anyone could swipe a notepad from a desk or a family member. It could also be a glaringly obvious pattern that the killer hoped someone would recognize.

I don't get it. I've seen stories on Forensic Files where letters have been analyzed for prints, type of ink, indentations in the paper etc. LPS simply stated that letters had been "found" & "recieved" but don't say if they were mailed via Canada Post or hand delivered. And the first letter was found at the church. This is why I'm stuck on the churchmember theory. Trying to come up with other possible scenarios but there is almost nothing to go on.
 
Just some more thoughts...

When I was looking at the letter I thought I could see a number 3 or 8 faintly in the top right corner of the paper?

I had been so focused on Blackfriars Bridge that I totally overlooked something. At one time there was a nightclub (strip club?) called The Forum on Oxford Street just minutes from the Pillar Of Fire Church & Blackfriars. There was space at the front of the building where you could pull in & access the river from there. Taxis & police still park there or use it to make a quick turn-around. People also bring their bikes/rollerblades/dogs & park either in that lot or further north via Gibbons Park.

The police statement says remains (mandible) were found on the bank of the Thames near Napier Street which is up river/north of where the first remains were recovered. It is also just south of the bridge on Oxford Street where the nightclub was. Considering the short distance Samuels' remains had "scattered" (or maybe not naturally?) I am thinking the killer might have placed Samuels' body in the river via Gibbons Park or the area of the club. Of course Samuel could have been dismembered. I can't really make sense of how/why the skull & mandible where so far apart in the river unless that is common ino decomposition? It seems kind of backwards as I would imagine that the mandible should decompose & drift from the skull & follow the current, not the other way around.

Having said that, I was watching an episode of Forensic Files recently (entitled "Who's Your Daddy") in which the murderer strangled a woman in his car & just rolled her body down the embankment into the river. No blood, no weapon, no dismemberment or concealment. The difference is that the womans' body was only partially decomposed & had been strangled. Samuels' remains were just bones. Whatever was used to kill Samuel had left marks on his bones. Either trauma to the skull or maybe tool/knife marks or evidence of a bullet.

I also keep wondering if the killer would have the nerve to send a condolence card. If it was someone close to them or someone in their circle, something like that would almost be expected. Even just under the guiseof appearing sympathetic to avoid suspicion. On one hand it would seem ridiculous to take that risk but then again, writing those letters was risky to begin with. I think that is kind of the whole reason murderers do it in the first place, no? The thrill maybe mixed with some guilt or need for attention?

I wonder if the killer kept Samuels' wallet & what did they do with the murder weapon? Am I ever going to find any answers or is this whole thing pointless?
 
I believe the family could make requests for his wallet if it was turned into Lost and Found at schools, bus stations etc. If LE had it, they (LE) may have informed the family.
 
I wish we could see the writing style at least, could be very distinctive writing that a relative/friend might identify, including the gender. Without knowing the contents it's hard to determine as an outsider, if it's the taunting rants of a killer or an apology (which is still bizarre)?

Could the letter writer actually be a female relative of the killer who confessed to her, she is protecting him but wanted Sam's remains found?
 
I am looking at weather underground for the day he went missing

It was kind of a ''balmy'' winter day -- only -2C (30 degrees F) at coldest and it warmed up to 47F
It was a Friday and I am wondering if maybe he had something planned outside because it would have been fairly pleasant -- ??

Mean Temperature 30 °F (Actual) -
Max Temperature 47 °F (Actual)24 °F (Avg) 43 °F (2013) (record)--it looks like it broke a ''high'' record for that date!!
Min Temperature 14 °F (Actual)11 °F (Avg) -2 °F (1997) (record)

http://www.wunderground.com/history...reqdb.zip=00000&reqdb.magic=1&reqdb.wmo=71623

now it would have been dumb and dumber to go near ice covered lakes, ponds or rivers but......people do it all the time...I'm wondering if there was a accident ??

what would he have normally done after school on a Friday night?? hang w/friends? did he have a part time job or did a friend work a part time job where he may have visited a friend ((thinking coffee shop, McD's or similar))
 
I cannot stop thinking about this case. I screencapped the letter & changed the hues & saturation (idk what I hoped to find?) I've been looking at maps & thinking about the weather & why that location & what directions... I saw an episode of CSI Miami yesterday where a guy killed his old classmate at a reunion & they knew it was him based on handwriting from an old yearbook (among other evidence, it was CSI afterall lol).

The *really* bizarre thing that makes me feel attatched is not only did I recognize Samuel from school but back on March 15th 2009, me & a friend met up at the new Starbucks & walked along the path exactly between Oxford & Blackfriars down into Harris Park (along the east side of the river). I stopped to take a picture of a little beaver that was just before & almost under Blackfriars Bridge. I'm looking at the calendar & see that it will be March 15th on Sunday. It was also March when the first letter was found & they had recovered Samuels' skull from the Guy Lombardo Bridge in April of the previous year (2008).

Obviously this is all very strange & it's even more strange to me bc just last May I bought a new phone & put in an old micro SD card which contained the original photo I'd taken of the beaver. I didn't even realize at the time I was just simply taking a photo bc I had seen 3 that spring & they were cute. I feel like I don't know what to do with this coincidence. It breaks my heart. I can't explain how it feels. It probably sounds crazy. It feels crazy. I have no one to talk to about this & the whole thing is freaking me out.

The only reason I came across Samuels' case is bc some creep tried to pick me up in his car so I went on the LPS website to see if he was on there. That's when I found not only Samuel but also discovered that Katherine Patricia Bordato had gone missing in my neighbourhood & another girl from the east end (cannot recall her name but she had a baby). Now I don't have the heart to delete the picture of the little beaver. It feels like it means something even though it doesn't mean anything. The last thing I will say is I phoned LPS to tell them about the guy in his car & mentioned to the officer both Patricia & the other missing girl. This was a female officer similar to my age & even she said "Well I think that in Patricias' case she was living a risky lifestyle". Those were her words to me. So it is very disheartening to see that kind of response & can understand why things have taken so long in Samuels' case.
 
whiterhino said:
I cannot stop thinking about this case. I screencapped the letter & changed the hues & saturation (idk what I hoped to find?) I've been looking at maps & thinking about the weather & why that location & what directions... I saw an episode of CSI Miami yesterday where a guy killed his old classmate at a reunion & they knew it was him based on handwriting from an old yearbook (among other evidence, it was CSI afterall lol).

The *really* bizarre thing that makes me feel attatched is not only did I recognize Samuel from school but back on March 15th 2009, me & a friend met up at the new Starbucks & walked along the path exactly between Oxford & Blackfriars down into Harris Park (along the east side of the river). I stopped to take a picture of a little beaver that was just before & almost under Blackfriars Bridge. I'm looking at the calendar & see that it will be March 15th on Sunday. It was also March when the first letter was found & they had recovered Samuels' skull from the Guy Lombardo Bridge in April of the previous year (2008).

Obviously this is all very strange & it's even more strange to me bc just last May I bought a new phone & put in an old micro SD card which contained the original photo I'd taken of the beaver. I didn't even realize at the time I was just simply taking a photo bc I had seen 3 that spring & they were cute. I feel like I don't know what to do with this coincidence. It breaks my heart. I can't explain how it feels. It probably sounds crazy. It feels crazy. I have no one to talk to about this & the whole thing is freaking me out.

The only reason I came across Samuels' case is bc some creep tried to pick me up in his car so I went on the LPS website to see if he was on there. That's when I found not only Samuel but also discovered that Katherine Patricia Bordato had gone missing in my neighbourhood & another girl from the east end (cannot recall her name but she had a baby). Now I don't have the heart to delete the picture of the little beaver. It feels like it means something even though it doesn't mean anything. The last thing I will say is I phoned LPS to tell them about the guy in his car & mentioned to the officer both Patricia & the other missing girl. This was a female officer similar to my age & even she said "Well I think that in Patricias' case she was living a risky lifestyle". Those were her words to me. So it is very disheartening to see that kind of response & can understand why things have taken so long in Samuels' case.
Click to expand...


are you the same age and was SL a classmate of yours?
 
dotr said:
http://www.lfpress.com/news/london/2009/10/27/11539966.html


Who killed Sam Lottery?
JOE BELANGER October 27, 2009


"He was a happy-go-lucky kid, a London high school student with a knack for electronics who liked to go to Jamaica with his family.

Like many teens, he also liked basketball and hip hop.

But one winter day, nearly 14 years ago, Sam Lottery never made it home.

First, the anonymous -- and ominous -- notes surfaced, suggesting his family search the river.

Then, bones starting turning up -- an arm bone found near the Thames River in 1997 and a skull in the river a decade later."

>>snip>>

"CASE CHRONOLOGY

Jan. 18, 1996: Sam Lottery vanishes, failing to return to his London family's White Oaks home. A missing person's report is filed.

February 1996: The first of two anonymous notes to Lottery's family surfaces, suggesting the Thames River be searched. Six months later, another note comes.

May 1997: A man walking his dog near Blackfriar's Bridge finds an arm bone. Police turn up more bones. Nineteen months later, after forensic testing, police say the bones were Lottery's and his case is declared "suspicious."

June 2000: His family buries Lottery's remains.

April 2008: A skull that turns out to be Lottery's is found in the river near Greenway Park, leading to more forensic testing.

October 26, 2009: Police say they believe Lottery was killed and have launched a homicide investigation."
Click to expand...


bbm:18 January 1996 he didn't come home

that day was very nice and I can't help but think of playing hookey -- going to Conservation area for fun MOO

it went up to 54F that day -- positively balmy for that time of year!!!!!

did he have friends with cars?

http://www.wunderground.com/history...ry.html?req_city=London&req_statename=Ontario

lowest temperature was 42 and it was high of 54!!!
 
exams or early dismissal or ''pro day'' --
have searched online and currently Central High School in London has '''exams''' scheduled for that week -- don't have access to the 1996 calendar but it does raise questions.....he would have been in Grade 12 so his schedule may have been more flexible....
 
there's so little to go on but given his age and emphasis on being a good kid, it tells me that (a) school attendance and schedule that day holds the clue and (b) friends at school and/or (c) special events associated with school like team sports etc and/or (d) studying with others for exams or presentations.

his family would be best source for that......

is his family still in the London area?

did he have younger or older siblings that may be able to shed light on his frame of mind that week?

if it was grad year, was there a special grad trip planned or other events --
 
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