At a press conference announcing the arrest, police said they believed there were more victims.

Over the next three months, McArthur, 67, would be charged with first-degree murder in the deaths of six more men: Majeed Kayhan, 58; Soroush Mahmudi, 50; Dean Lisowick, 47; Skandaraj (Skanda) Navaratnam, 40, Abdulbasir Faizi, 42, and Kirushnakumar Kanagaratnam, 37.

The sprawling, months-long police probe has seen the largest forensic investigation in Toronto’s history, and resulted in the discovery of dismembered, skeletal human remains buried in large planters on a Leaside property.

The arrest of an alleged serial killer came after long-held speculation in the Church-Wellesley community that a murderer was in their midst — a concern met with denial by police until just weeks before McArthur was arrested. As questions mounted about whether an arrest could have been made sooner, an independent review has been launched into the Toronto police handling of missing person’s cases.

Below is a detailed account of key dates in the ongoing investigation.

The Star intends to update this story as the Bruce McArthur case unfolds:

Oct. 2001: McArthur, 50, attacks a man midday inside the victim’s apartment in the Gay Village. McArthur strikes the man numerous times with a metal pipe. The victim, who has advertised in gay publications as a male hustler, calls 911 and is taken to hospital. McArthur goes to police headquarters to say he may have hurt someone and doesn’t know why he did it.

Jan. – April 2003: McArthur pleads guilty to assault with a weapon and assault causing bodily harm in the 2001 attack, his first criminal conviction. He later receives a conditional sentence of two years less a day, and three years’ probation. As part of his probation, he is barred from an area of the city that includes the Gay Village and from spending time with “male prostitutes.” He is also ordered to have a sample of DNA taken and added to a database. He later obtains a pardon for the conviction.

Sept. 2010: Skandaraj (Skanda) Navaratnam, 40, goes missing after he is seen leaving Zipperz, a now-closed bar at Church and Carlton Sts., with an unknown man. Speaking anonymously, a source tells Xtra that McArthur once dated Navaratnam, who is originally from Sri Lanka, beginning around 1999. The two men were listed as friends on Facebook.

Police later allege McArthur killed Navaratnam on or about Sept. 6.

Dec. 2010: Abdulbasir Faizi, a 42-year-old machine operator at a printing company in Mississauga, is reported missing to Peel Regional Police. His car is later found abandoned in Toronto, in the area of St. Clair Ave. E. and Mount Pleasant Rd.

Police later allege McArthur killed Faizi on or about Dec. 29, 2010, according to court documents.

Oct. 2012: Majeed Kayhan, a 58-year-old Afghan immigrant, disappears and is reported missing by his son.

Police later allege McArthur killed Kayhan “on or about” Oct. 18, 2012.

Nov. 2012: Toronto police in downtown’s 51 division launch Project Houston, an investigation into the disappearances of Navaratnam, Kayhan, and Faizi.

Late 2012 – June 2013: During Project Houston, Toronto police find some evidence Navaratnam has been murdered. Investigators from the homicide squad join the case, pursuing evidence including the suggestion Navaratnam had been the victim of a cannibalism ring. That evidence is discounted — and the investigation continues without the involvement of the homicide squad.

April 2014: Project Houston ends. McArthur was never a suspect in the investigation, but sources will later tell the Star he was questioned by police around the time of Project Houston.

Aug. 2015: Soroush Mahmudi, a 50-year-old professional painter, is last seen alive by his home near Markham Rd. and Blakemanor Blvd. in Scarborough. He is reported missing by his family.

Police later allege McArthur killed Mahmudi on or about Aug. 15.

Late 2015: Police later allege McArthur kills Kirushnakumar Kanagaratnam, 37, sometime between September 2015 and December 2015.

Kanagaratnam, a refugee from Sri Lanka, had never been reported missing.

2016: Toronto police question McArthur after a man reports that McArthur attempted to strangle him during an otherwise consensual encounter, according to sources who spoke to the Star. McArthur is let go.

April 2016: Dean Lisowick checks into the Scott Mission shelter in Toronto for the last time.

Police later allege McArthur killed Lisowick between April 2016 and March 2017.

April 2017: Selim Esen, a 44-year-old Turkish citizen, goes missing.

Police later allege McArthur killed Esen on or about April 16, 2017.

June 2017: Andrew Kinsman, a 49-year-old Cabbagetown resident, goes missing. Investigators will later confirm that Kinsman and McArthur had a sexual relationship.

Police later allege McArthur killed Kinsman on or about June 26.

Aug. 2017: Toronto police launch Project Prism, a probe into the disappearances of Esen and Kinsman. Investigators from downtown’s 51 division and other units are brought in, and information is shared from Project Houston.

Sept. 2017: McArthur becomes a person of interest in Kinsman’s death, launching a probe into McArthur that would include surveillance of his vehicle and a team of officers tracking him around the GTA.

Nov. 2017: Police uncover evidence suggesting Kinsman has likely been murdered and McArthur is a suspect. Part of their investigation includes seizing McArthur’s rusted maroon Dodge Caravan from Dom’s Auto Parts in Courtice, just outside Oshawa.

Unsealed court documents later reveal that Kinsman’s blood was found inside one of McArthur’s vehicles.

Dec. 2017: Toronto police Chief Mark Saunders downplays the suggestion of a serial killer in the Gay Village, as concerns mount about a growing list of people disappearing from the area.

A police spokesperson says there is “no evidence — let me repeat, no evidence” linking any of the disappearances. Homicide investigators, meanwhile, obtain authorization to surreptitiously enter McArthur’s home and clone his computer in connection to Kinsman’s death.

Jan. 18, 2018: McArthur is under police surveillance when officers observe a young man entering his apartment and intervene. The man is found tied up but unharmed.

McArthur is arrested and charged with the murders of Esen and Kinsman. The charges are made possible after police uncover evidence that “pushed the case over the edge,” says Det.-Sgt. Hank Idsinga, the lead detective on the case. Investigators believe there are other victims and reveal they are searching properties linked to McArthur, in Toronto and Madoc, Ont.

Jan. 29, 2018: McArthur is charged in the deaths of three more men: Kayhan, Mahmudi, and Lisowick. Idsinga reveals police discovered the dismembered, skeletal remains of three unidentified people buried inside planters at a Leaside home where McArthur worked as a landscaper. Investigators seize more than a dozen large planters from the property in search of more human remains.

Feb. 8, 2018: Toronto police reveal that the remains of at least six people have been recovered from a private property at 53 Mallory Cres., a Leaside home owned by Karen Fraser and Ron Smith. The remains of Kinsman are identified through fingerprint evidence.

A few days later, after heating and excavating frozen earth in the backyard, police say they will halt digging but may return when the weather is warmer.

Feb. 23, 2018: McArthur is charged with Navaratnam’s murder. Navaratnam’s remains were among the dismembered human remains recovered inside the planters, identified through dental records.

The charge means McArthur is now accused of killing two of the three men whose disappearances were probed during Project Houston. Mahmudi’s remains have also been identified through dental records, police reveal.

March 5, 2018: In a rare move, Toronto police release a photo of a dead, unidentified man who they believe is a seventh victim of McArthur. The image is a close-up of a deceased man with dark skin, black hair and a beard. Investigators “cleaned up” the photo to “remove some artifacts,” Idsinga says.

Police also reveal that a seventh set of human remains have been uncovered in the Mallory Cres. planters. The discovery means four outstanding sets of human remains are undergoing forensic DNA testing to be identified.

March 6, 2018: The Star reveals that an internal police misconduct investigation has begun in connection with a past police interaction with McArthur. Idsinga tells the Star he initiated a complaint into “concerning” behaviour of officers who “potentially did not do what they were supposed to have done,” but does not provide any detail.

March 22, 2018: In the wake of mounting questions about past handling of the McArthur investigation, the Toronto police board commissions an external review of how Toronto police handle missing-persons cases — though the probe cannot directly examine the McArthur case because of the ongoing investigation and looming trial. The external investigation is supported by Chief Saunders, who had already launched an internal investigation of missing-persons cases.

April 3, 2018: Toronto police withdraw an application to participate in the 2018 Pride parade, one day after Pride Toronto and a coalition of LGBTQ groups called on police to rescind their request to take part.

Citing anger and shock about the deaths in the Gay Village and “insufficient” investigations into missing-persons cases, the groups said the damaged relationship between the community and police “cannot be mended through a parade.”

April 11, 2018: McArthur is charged with a seventh count first-degree murder in Faizi’s death after forensic pathologists identify his remains among those found in the Mallory Cres. planters.

April 16, 2018: Police identify the deceased man in the photograph as Kirushnakumar Kanagaratnam, and charge McArthur with an eighth count of first-degree murder. Kanagaratnam is the youngest man alleged to be killed by McArthur.

May 2018: Toronto police complete their four-month forensic examination of McArthur’s 19th-floor Thorncliffe Park apartment building. They seized 1,800 exhibits and took more than 18,000 photographs. The probe is officially the largest forensic investigation in Toronto’s history.

June 2018: Ontario Court of Appeal Justice Gloria Epstein is tapped to lead an independent review of how Toronto police review missing persons cases. She retires from Ontario’s highest court to conduct the review, which will examine whether the probes into the alleged McArthur victims’ disappearances could have been “tainted by systemic bias or discrimination.”

July 2018: Toronto police resume an extensive search behind 53 Mallory Cres. involving cadaver dogs and locate human remains just hours in. Human remains are found virtually every day of the nine-day excavation of what police called a ‘compost pile’ at the back of the property, in a forested ravine.

The remains are identified as those of Kayhan, the sole alleged McArthur victims whose remains had not yet been recovered. His are the only remains not buried inside large planters on the same Leaside property.

October 2018: Toronto police provide details of its dedicated missing person’s unit, formed after criticism of Toronto police handling of sudden disappearances, including those now alleged to be McArthur’s victims.

Wendy Gillis is a Toronto-based reporter covering crime and policing. Reach her by email at wgillis@thestar.ca or follow her on Twitter: @wendygillis