The Crossbow Killer

Brett Ryan grew up in Scarborough, in Toronto’s east end. Beginning in 2007 he robbed banks while wearing a glue-on beard, which earned him the nickname “Bearded Bandit.” He pleaded guilty, received three years and nine months, and was paroled in April 2010. By 2016 he was 35 and engaged, and he had told his fiancée and family that he had a university degree and a steady job. Neither was true.

His mother, Susan Ryan, 66, supported him financially. When she learned about his lies and insisted he tell his fiancée, he planned to kill her. On August 25, 2016, at the family home, he attacked Susan in the garage with a crossbow bolt and strangled her. He then killed his brothers Chris, 42, and A.J., 29, with crossbow bolts. His remaining brother, Leigh, 39, fought him off, escaped and ran to neighbors, who called 911. Police later found fans on timers in Ryan’s condo, rigged to tap a laptop and phone screens so it would look as if he had been home and online.

In July 2017 Ryan pleaded guilty to first-degree murder in his mother’s death, second-degree murder in the deaths of Chris and A.J., and the attempted murder of Leigh. He received three concurrent life sentences with no chance of parole for 25 years, plus a concurrent 10-year term.