Canada - Barry, 75, & Honey Sherman, 70, found dead, Toronto, 15 Dec 2017 #15

[deugirtni]

I am not even close to being tech savvy. Can I change the time on my phone, then take a picture and have the time appear as if it was taken at the altered time? Not accusing anyone, I’m just curious.
In defence of JS he was asked by KD where he was around the time of the murders. He used the pictures to try and answer this question. I don’t see anything sinister about that.
I would have to believe that LE has reviewed JS phone and it’s content already. Could it be possible that they haven’t done that yet? I can’t imagine they haven’t.
What I do find strange is that when KD pointed out that the time stamps on the photos didn’t necessarily vindicate him, JS didn’t immediately say that he had an alibi (like he was home with his family, with friends, etc). Instead he immediately went to speculating that the murderers were hired by someone, thereby implying that the person that did the hiring wouldnt have Been present at the scene of the crime. Very strange response IMO.

To me, when asked for whereabouts during the time his parents were killed, it seems evasive to instead of just saying where you were during a period of several hours, show two photos which are each definitively timestamped for one second in time, when the murders could have happened during a span of say anywhere from between 3 and 18 hours. Then when called on it, he still doesn't say where, but only that the killer likely wouldn't have been present anyway.

It is very possible that TPS has not reviewed the Shermans' offsprings' phones, unless they had search warrants, which we have seen no indication of.. and for which my guess is that there would've been a loud outcry about the injustice of it all. imo.

 

[deugirtni]

An article about:

5 ways accountants can track cryptocurrency
Experts offer techniques for investigating cryptocurrencies.

5 ways accountants can track cryptocurrency

 

[deugirtni]

I'm thinking about the slow and meticulous checking/following/tracing of data, which I am imagining the 'one' officer from TPS may be working on, after having (finally?) received a big batch of documents they had been waiting on through legal channels. .. and noticing 'patterns'.. which had been mentioned. Hopefully TPS is doing some really good forensic accounting work!

 

[deugirtni]

Are we sure we have the correct 'Green Storage'? On the CEWS Registry, it indicates the operating name of the business is:
Business Name: GREEN STORAGE SOLUTIONS INC.

Operating Name: NET ZERO CONSTRUCTION

---
That said, I wonder if THIS 'Green Storage' might be affiliated? Could this be what took Kaelen to Israel?

Home - המחסן הירוק - שירותי אחסנה

The Correct Storage Company?
@deugirtni sbm Good question.
1. The JS-affiliated co. "GREEN STORAGE SOLUTIONS INC." above came from ??? Sorry I've missed a lot of info on threads.
2. I searched multiple iterations of above names, but maybe not the right one, at Home - Corporations Canada and Search for a Federal Corporation - Online Filing Centre - Corporations Canada - Corporations - Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada w zero results or findings. Could be wrong WS as it refers to federal corp's. Maybe each Canadian province maintains a registry of provincial corps?

{eta: This Jan 11, 2021 article* refers to "chain of nine self storage properties."
Home | Green Storage/ the source of rental pricing in my post yesterday says co. has eight locations. Leads me to think that is the 'correct' Green Storage.}

* Barry Sherman’s son says his father asked him to repay tens of millions of dollars, two weeks before murders, but Barry was ‘all in’ with son’s business - Today News Post

I noticed on AP's 'LinkedIn' that he says he is president of 'Green Storage Inc.'

I wasn't able to find corporate info either, and yes the company could have incorporated either provincially or federally:

What Is the Difference Between Federal and Provincial Incorporation?

 

[al66pine]

I noticed on AP's 'LinkedIn' that he says he is president of 'Green Storage Inc.'
I wasn't able to find corporate info either, and yes the company could have incorporated either provincially or federally: What Is the Difference Between Federal and Provincial Incorporation?

@deugirtni.
Thanks for the info about fed & prov. incorp. Just kinda half-azz guessed at it, didn't take time to check.

I am not a Canadian atty, not even Canadian.

 

[Lexiintoronto]

To me, when asked for whereabouts during the time his parents were killed, it seems evasive to instead of just saying where you were during a period of several hours, show two photos which are each definitively timestamped for one second in time, when the murders could have happened during a span of say anywhere from between 3 and 18 hours. Then when called on it, he still doesn't say where, but only that the killer likely wouldn't have been present anyway.

rsbm

If he answers ‘with my husband, FM, at home.’ then he’s stuck with that statement and brings FM into this as a witness, IMO.

I’m still shocked by the recent story by Donovan. JS said this in the Star article: “I don’t know anyone who can plan a murder in three weeks, but I can tell you I was not involved.”
Barry Sherman’s son says his father asked him to repay tens of millions of dollars, two weeks before murders, but Barry was ‘all in’ with son’s business

The murders were planned within three weeks? How does he know that? Or is that when the arguments about repaying money back to BS started?

Further from the article (bbm):

“Every dollar borrowed has been returned,” he (JS) says.

As to the request from his father to repay the $50 million to $60 million, Jonathon tells me that my questions are making “a lot more of that request” than he did at the time. “We never really saw it as a threat,” Jonathon says. He says a shareholder agreement existed between father and son that said “we never have to give you back any money.”

..end of quote.

There’s an email where BS say JS’s ‘hostility persists’.

JS seemed to have almost no cash at the time of the murders, and needed millions by December 15th.

From the article: “Please see attached a breakdown of our immediate cash needs. Barry has agreed to cover us with these needs.” Paulin and Jonathon were requesting $6.2 million by Dec. 15 and another unspecified amount “no later than Jan. 15.” ...

...Three minutes later, Barry writes back: “Adam: As discussed, you have to take steps immediately to arrange mortgages (to repay the $50-60 million). What will you do and when?”

 

[ldlager]

To me, when asked for whereabouts during the time his parents were killed, it seems evasive to instead of just saying where you were during a period of several hours, show two photos which are each definitively timestamped for one second in time, when the murders could have happened during a span of say anywhere from between 3 and 18 hours. Then when called on it, he still doesn't say where, but only that the killer likely wouldn't have been present anyway.

It is very possible that TPS has not reviewed the Shermans' offsprings' phones, unless they had search warrants, which we have seen no indication of.. and for which my guess is that there would've been a loud outcry about the injustice of it all. imo.

thanks Deugirtni. Agreed that it appears evasive.
I am certainly not an expert in crime investigation, but it’s hard for me to believe that after 3 years they haven’t examined the phones of JS and other immediate family members. That seems so obvious to me, even if it causes a stir, so what, LE is paid to prevent and solve crimes, not to never cause any waves. Maybe others who are more informed than me can weigh in.

 

[ldlager]

thx for even more colour

I may have said something that is wrong...... AP is not JS husband. that is FM, I believe.. and there 2 AP's in Toronto.

what about the JS friend that BS gave large mortgage to?..... not re: murder. but what was that all about?....... was that JS romantic friend at time? my recollection is "no"

I don’t recall that Tobiano, sorry. But sleuths like DOtr and Mistywaters are masters at finding this sort of info.

 

[ldlager]

rsbm

If he answers ‘with my husband, FM, at home.’ then he’s stuck with that statement and brings FM into this as a witness, IMO.

I’m still shocked by the recent story by Donovan. JS said this in the Star article: “I don’t know anyone who can plan a murder in three weeks, but I can tell you I was not involved.”
Barry Sherman’s son says his father asked him to repay tens of millions of dollars, two weeks before murders, but Barry was ‘all in’ with son’s business

The murders were planned within three weeks? How does he know that? Or is that when the arguments about repaying money back to BS started?

Further from the article (bbm):

“Every dollar borrowed has been returned,” he (JS) says.

As to the request from his father to repay the $50 million to $60 million, Jonathon tells me that my questions are making “a lot more of that request” than he did at the time. “We never really saw it as a threat,” Jonathon says. He says a shareholder agreement existed between father and son that said “we never have to give you back any money.”

..end of quote.

There’s an email where BS say JS’s ‘hostility persists’.

JS seemed to have almost no cash at the time of the murders, and needed millions by December 15th.

From the article: “Please see attached a breakdown of our immediate cash needs. Barry has agreed to cover us with these needs.” Paulin and Jonathon were requesting $6.2 million by Dec. 15 and another unspecified amount “no later than Jan. 15.” ...

...Three minutes later, Barry writes back: “Adam: As discussed, you have to take steps immediately to arrange mortgages (to repay the $50-60 million). What will you do and when?”

Lexi, regarding the 3 weeks I believe JS was saying that if someone wants to use the fact that JS was asked to come up with 50 million or so as a motive for murder, that only happened about 3 weeks before the murders, so he would have had only 3 weeks to arrange a murder, and Surely that isn’t enough time, right?
IMO his statement makes absolutely no sense. Lots of murders happen in a split second, with no planning!

 

[kiwi50]

Does anyone know how long JS was in Japan for.?
If anyone was planning a hit, I guess if you planned it in a foreign country, there would be less of an electronic trail.

 

[dotr]

Wondering if BS or HS ever invested in bitcoin, would they be likely to lose the password (and money) as so many others apparently have done?
Could others access a bitcoin account if they had the password to it ?speculation, imo.
Lost passwords lock millionaires out of their bitcoin fortunes
Jan. 12, 2021
''The New York Times
Stefan Thomas, a German-born programmer living in San Francisco, has two guesses left to figure out a password that is worth, as of this week, about $220 million.

The password will let him unlock a small hard drive, known as an IronKey, which contains the private keys to a digital wallet that holds 7,002 bitcoins. While the price of bitcoin dropped sharply on Monday, it is still up more than 50% from just a month ago when it passed its previous all-time high of around $20,000.

The problem is that Thomas years ago lost the paper where he wrote down the password for his IronKey, which gives users 10 guesses before it seizes up and encrypts its contents forever. He has since tried eight of his most commonly used password formulations — to no avail.''

''Bitcoin, which has been on an extraordinary and volatile eight-month run, has made a lot of its holders very rich in a short period of time, even as the coronavirus pandemic has ravaged the world economy.

But the cryptocurrency’s unusual nature has also meant that many people are locked out of their bitcoin fortunes as a result of lost or forgotten keys. They have been forced to watch, helpless, as the price has risen and fallen sharply, unable to cash in on their digital wealth.

Of the existing 18.5 million bitcoin, around 20% — currently worth around $140 billion — appear to be in lost or otherwise stranded wallets, according to the cryptocurrency data firm Chainalysis.''

 

[Lexiintoronto]

thx for even more colour

I may have said something that is wrong...... AP is not JS husband. that is FM, I believe.. and there 2 AP's in Toronto.

what about the JS friend that BS gave large mortgage to?..... not re: murder. but what was that all about?....... was that JS romantic friend at time? my recollection is "no"

On page 215 of Donovan’s book he wrote about a house JS asked BS to buy for then-boyfriend AL for $4 million in 2011.

BS registered a $14 million mortgage that he privately held on the property. It underwent major renovations, but also sustained major damages by frequent parties. It was sold at a loss in 2015, for $11.5 million.

 

[casesensitive]

I agree, I think the most incriminating evidence pointing to JS is that his own sister Alex determined that he was involved in their parent's killing, either after hearing evidence generated from Greenspan's investigation, or just her own deduction. She was so sure that her brother was involved, she had to hire a lawyer to stop the Greenspan investigation, and demand that the evidence be turned over to TPS.

JS recently decided to respond by email to KD's questions, and to actually have an interview. It may be a decision of an innocent person who wants to defend himself in social media, or a desperate person who knows he has to explain away evidence for motive. He didn't reveal anything that TPS already know, so he decided to be open. As someone said, it was a fail, like Prince Andrew's interview.

His contentious emails to his father were merely "pokes" at Barry, which he always liked to do. They were all pokes, and nothing serious. Here is one that is just a poke. (don't forget to laugh).

"The day before he made that suggestion to his sisters (that Barry was incompetent) Jonathon sent an email to Barry seeking $150 million to purchase one quarter of the cottages on Chandos Lake, plus an additional $100 million to expand Green Storage. Jonathon says this was not a real request for money, but rather another “poke” at his father for his continued funding of D’Angelo, suggesting the money would be better spent on him."

What is unusual for a person of interest, is that they would hire another investigative firm to report their findings to TPS, as JS has done. If this is true, that would be a huge risk if he was involved, but I have seen it done before. I wonder why he felt the need to hire another private investigation firm, after he already paid Greenspan about a million dollars to it. Sounds like he didn't like some evidence generated by Greenspan's investigation for some reason, and needed to get a different opinion. jmo

 

[tayaway]

MOO: After reading the latest Kevin Donovan piece, I've come to the possible conclusion that JS is a wannabe Bond Villain. There's a whole list of reasons why, if you want to see them. I don't know why JS's ego allowed a sit down interview with KD ultimately, but like Prince Andrew's interview with Emily Maitlis, well done! Sure, there are plenty of suspects on the list, but JS on it too and IMOO, he's moved closer to the number one spot if he's not there already.

 

[WINDSOR]

When is KD and the Toronto Star going to interview Alex, JS's sister. I am sure she has some interesting insights, especially why she suspects JS of involvement in their parents' deaths.

 

[dalsglen]

When is KD and the Toronto Star going to interview Alex, JS's sister. I am sure she has some interesting insights, especially why she suspects JS of involvement in their parents' deaths.

I suspect she's a much classier lady and won't chuck him under the bus... Yet

 

[al66pine]

Bitcoin & Passwords/Keys & Memory?

Wondering if BS or HS ever invested in bitcoin, would they be likely to lose the password (and money) as so many others apparently have done?
Could others access a bitcoin account if they had the password to it ?speculation, imo.

Lost passwords lock millionaires out of their bitcoin fortunes
Jan. 12, 2021
''The New York Times
Stefan Thomas, a German-born programmer living in San Francisco, has two guesses left to figure out a password that is worth, as of this week, about $220 million...
Of the existing 18.5 million bitcoin, around 20% — currently worth around $140 billion — appear to be in lost or otherwise stranded wallets, according to the cryptocurrency data firm Chainalysis.''

@dotr sbm bbm Glad you posted this. 20% of bitcoin is lost or stranded?
If Stefan Thomas did not keep track of his multi-multi-million $ a/c, no telling how much more loose change he has. Maybe someone checking under his sofa cushions or his car's ashtray could find enough to retire on.

Seriously, you posed an intriguing Q?: Did BS or HS use/invest in bitcoin of other cryptocurrencies? Hmmm.

{{{eta: A short O/T note: Seems some exec's elsewhere suffered memory lapses, at least in providing records to Fed prosecutors. "... data that was given to investigators was only accessible through a computer password that Theranos executives couldn’t remember, according to prosecutors." bbm Boy oh boy.
^ Theranos employees 'destroyed crucial blood test database that proved their product was a fraud' | Daily Mail Online
hattip to @Seattle1, who linked and quoted ^ in Websleuths' thread here: CA - Elizabeth Holmes (Theranos) Wire Fraud}}}

 

[Kittybunny]

The cryptocurrency thing is an strange detail I keep coming back to. As far as I know, It’s an infamously untraceable way to transfer large payments because many of them, like Bitcoin, are anonymous. JS says that on the night of the murder, he took a picture of his hand, and a note with the time code of 7:17 and his crypto “seed code”. That’s an odd coincidence, isn’t it?

Since I know nothing about crypto, I did a bit of research. I’m not sure which one he was using, but it seems that pretty consistently across most cryptos, this is how seed phrases work:

“A seed phrase, seed recovery phrase or backup seed phrase is a list of words which store all the information needed to recover Bitcoin funds on-chain. Wallet software will typically generate a seed phrase and instruct the user to write it down on paper.” (Seed phrase - Bitcoin Wiki)

This is consistent with what JS did, which is take a picture of a code on a piece of paper. Now, it also goes on to say that “Anybody else who discovers the phrase can steal the bitcoins, so it must be kept safe like jewels or cash”.

Here’s the question: why did JS take a picture of his seed phrase on his phone? IMO, since it’s so insecure (i.e. anyone that accessed the picture could access the funds), it ONLY makes sense to me that he would do this unless he was using crypto that night to send funds. Especially since he still has the photo...why would he risk keeping the pic on his phone unless the wallet had been emptied?

This is all speculation of course, and my opinion only. But LE, and private companies that specialize in this, DO have ways of tracing blockchains (crypto transactions). If I was a detective on this case, I would definitely want to know why JS was using a seed phrase the night his parents were killed.

Since my mind tends to go a bit fuzzy when cryptocurrency comes up, I appreciate your research, but more importantly your very clear summary and explanation of the possible implications. Brilliant. And very very interesting indeed.

 

[deugirtni]

thanks Deugirtni. Agreed that it appears evasive.
I am certainly not an expert in crime investigation, but it’s hard for me to believe that after 3 years they haven’t examined the phones of JS and other immediate family members. That seems so obvious to me, even if it causes a stir, so what, LE is paid to prevent and solve crimes, not to never cause any waves. Maybe others who are more informed than me can weigh in.

It seems that for the first 6 weeks, TPS were actually going with the M/S theory. If that were the case, would they trouble the 4 kids to take their phones and make copies of them, just in case they murdered them? If not, would it have been worthwhile to do so after 6 weeks? Hope so! In any case, it's easy to leave one's phone at home while we go and commit a murder elsewhere? Would love to know what TPS actually has on this case!

 

[Lexiintoronto]

Wondering if BS or HS ever invested in bitcoin, would they be likely to lose the password (and money) as so many others apparently have done?
Could others access a bitcoin account if they had the password to it ?speculation, imo.
Lost passwords lock millionaires out of their bitcoin fortunes
Jan. 12, 2021
''The New York Times
Stefan Thomas, a German-born programmer living in San Francisco, has two guesses left to figure out a password that is worth, as of this week, about $220 million.

The password will let him unlock a small hard drive, known as an IronKey, which contains the private keys to a digital wallet that holds 7,002 bitcoins. While the price of bitcoin dropped sharply on Monday, it is still up more than 50% from just a month ago when it passed its previous all-time high of around $20,000.

The problem is that Thomas years ago lost the paper where he wrote down the password for his IronKey, which gives users 10 guesses before it seizes up and encrypts its contents forever. He has since tried eight of his most commonly used password formulations — to no avail.''

''Bitcoin, which has been on an extraordinary and volatile eight-month run, has made a lot of its holders very rich in a short period of time, even as the coronavirus pandemic has ravaged the world economy.

But the cryptocurrency’s unusual nature has also meant that many people are locked out of their bitcoin fortunes as a result of lost or forgotten keys. They have been forced to watch, helpless, as the price has risen and fallen sharply, unable to cash in on their digital wealth.

Of the existing 18.5 million bitcoin, around 20% — currently worth around $140 billion — appear to be in lost or otherwise stranded wallets, according to the cryptocurrency data firm Chainalysis.''

That’s a great point. BS invested in a wide range of things. Why not Bitcoin or something similar? I hope they weren’t killed because the murderers wanted B’s password. Or if it was a private transaction to buy Bitcoins that the killer set up, had access to, and killing Barry and Honey would mean he kept everything.

That made me think of Apotex security. Donovan wrote that there is a vault in Apotex where $1.3 billion of the active pharmaceutical ingredients needed to make pain killers are stored. It has a fingerprint lock that only two people can open.

Maybe only the killer and Barry knew if there was a possible Crptocurrency account.