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TORONTO — A man charged with murdering two Toronto women 40 years ago has pleaded guilty in both cases. 

Joseph George Sutherland was arrested in northern Ontario last November and charged with two counts of first-degree murder in the 1983 deaths of Erin Gilmour and Susan Tice.

Court documents show that Sutherland pleaded guilty to two counts of the lesser offence of second-degree murder last week.

Gilmour and Tice were found dead in their homes within four months of each other. Police had said both women, who did not know each other, were sexually assaulted and stabbed to death.

Tice was a 45-year-old mother of four who worked with disadvantaged children, and Gilmour was a 22-year-old aspiring fashion designer. 

Investigators have said that advances in genetic technology helped them crack the cold cases.

Sutherland, 61, is set to have a sentencing hearing in December. 

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 11, 2023. 

The Canadian Press